OAKES, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – Oakes’ annual Irrigation Days is a celebration for the people of Oakes and out-of-towners alike, but the celebration has been cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns.

The Oakes Area Chamber of Commerce (OACC) announced on its Facebook page on Friday that the event is cancelled because of “the safety of our local businesses and community members in mind,” according to the OACC’s Facebook post.

Irrigation Days becomes the latest event cancellation due to COVID-19. Grand Forks County Fair was cancelled last week, and Monday morning saw the demise of the North Dakota State Fair as well. The decision was difficult to make, and the OACC felt that COVID-19 forced their hand.

“Please understand that this is not a decision that we wanted to make, but a decision that we feel we had to make,” said the OACC’s Facebook post. “Based upon the current guidelines set forward that encourage social distancing and small crowd sizes, we would not be able to host Irrigation Days as we know it.”

Despite the cancellation of official Irrigation Days events, other events like class reunions and street dances will be at the discretion of those who organize those events.

The complete post can be found below.