The 2020 Christchurch A&P show is another victim of the coronavirus pandemic after the organisers revealed today that this year's event will be cancelled.
The show's event director Geoff Bone confirmed the news on TVNZ1's Breakfast this morning.
It is the first time since World War II that the show has been cancelled. This year's show was scheduled to take place in November.
“It’s a big day for us today I guess it’s with a heavy heart we’re going to announce the cancellation of the 2020 show, which is the first time since World War II that we’ve had to do such a thing.
The shows Event Director says they have been badly hit by uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
"We’re cancelling today so that we can protect the future for our community," said Mr Bone.
The decision means a $500,000 loss for the show but Mr Bone says it's the right decision to safeguard the show's volunteers and the 100,000 visitors who visit the show annually.
"The second issue for us is just the moral hazard of not just for our volunteers but for the 100,000 visitors that attend and if god forbid we became a (Covid-19) cluster we’re big enough to send the whole country, back into lockdown so that would make the half a million dollars that we’re loosing because of this decision look insignificant.
"We’ve spent a significant amount of money over the last six months preparing for the show in November and we have effectively spent all our savings."
Although it's been a difficult decision they plan to come back better than ever for next year's show.
"By doing this we can rebuild and we can do something amazing next year and I think that’s what's important is that we do something amazing."
To donate to the charity head to theshow.co.nz
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