Marley Barrell and Brett Simenac were among the hundreds of people walking away from Harris Park in London, Ont., Thursday after the annual Rock the Park music festival was cancelled.
“I was a bit disappointed but, you know, it’s been really smoky from the fires so I’m not surprised,” Simenac said.
Rock the Park among several London outdoor events cancelled amid air quality concerns
The festival’s first two days were among several events in Ontario that were cancelled last week due to air quality concerns from drifting wildfire smoke from the north.
It joins an even longer list of events that have been cancelled throughout the region this summer because of unexpected weather conditions, including extreme heat and storm warnings.
“It’s an increasing trend with live events that there are challenges around weather and the unpredictability of it,” London Music Office director Cory Crossman said.
The office’s weekly City of Music concert series was cancelled twice this season: once due to a series of tornado warnings and most recently due to the wildfire smoke.
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“I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a quick decision. A lot of thought goes into it,” Crossman explained. “We’re often looking at the impacts that it could have on the artists or the crew that are working or just the attendees that are trying to get to the event, so it’s important to step back and look at the big picture.”
In Toronto, FIFA Fan Festival and other World Cup watch parties were also cancelled over the weekend because of air quality concerns. Hamilton Fringe Fest cancelled a number of its events on Friday night. Niagara Parks has its nightly fireworks show on pause “until air quality conditions improve.”
Earlier this month, East London Canada Day cancelled its day-long celebrations because of extreme heat.
“Making the decision is agonizing because we don’t want to disappoint people,” Optimist Club of East London president LaVonne Haynes said. The club co-organizes Canada Day with the Argyle Business Improvement Association.
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“We were making the decision for some 7,000 people that would come out during the day … not to mention vendors and anyone else who is there like the bands,” she said. “That’s not easy. It’s very emotional.”
Haynes said most of the finances for Canada Day celebrations will carry over into next year. Sponsorships will be applied to next year’s event and any merchandise purchased will be saved for the future. Vendors had the choice to get their booth deposit back or pre-reserve their spot for 2027.
That’s not the case at all events.
Last weekend marked the 10th anniversary of the Colombian Gastronomy Festival in downtown London. However, organizer Pablo Tovar said the celebration was put on hold when he decided to cancel the first day of the festival because of the smoke.
“It was more than six months of planning and working on it, so it was a bit stressful [to cancel]. I even cried on Thursday because of all the work I put into it,” said Tovar, who runs entertainment company Stereo Caliente.
While the festival ran as planned on its last two days, Tovar said more than 40 food vendors still felt the economic impacts of losing Friday’s sales.
“The majority of vendors did well, but obviously some vendors had some food at the end because they prepared for Friday, Saturday and Sunday,” he explained.
Rock the Park supports several local charities through its drink ticket sales, including Big Brothers Big Sisters of London and Area (BBBSLA).
The charity’s interim executive director Lisa McIntosh said that while she supported Rock the Park’s decision to cancel its second day, she expected it would have an impact on BBBSLA’s overall funding this year.
“What will it all play out to be? We don’t know yet. But, it’s certainly something we’re thinking about as an organization and we’re looking for different ways to make up what I anticipate to be a loss,” McIntosh said.
Rock the Park organizers did not respond to CBC’s request for an interview before deadline.
In some cases, event cancellations can have an impact beyond finances.
While the London Music Office pays its artists, even when a concert is cancelled, Crossman said the change still takes a toll on musicians.
“We have to think of the loss that does happen when artists take time away from a day job or the routing for touring artists,” he said
Crossman added that in most cases, the music office books local artists so it is easy to reschedule a show rather than cancel entirely.
With the increase in unexpected weather events, some organizers are planning their future festivals differently.
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Tovar said he is starting to think about alternatives for his upcoming events, including London Beer Fest and London Seafood Festival, such as renting a large tent or moving indoors.
“It’s really challenging for all the outdoor events because if it’s not rain, it’s smoke. It’s hitting us this year really fast,” Tovar said. “But we’re still here, we’re thankful and we keep working hard. We’re not going to stop and we’ll always go find solutions.”
