High winds could ground the iconic balloons at Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade for the first time since 1971.
All eyes are on the New York forecast for Thursday, as the weather may put the much-watched parade’s balloons in jeopardy.
“It looks shaky for the balloons,” Accuweather senior meteorologist Steve Wistar told the New York Post, noting that a cold front is set to pass through the region Wednesday night, bringing with it cold weather and gusty winds for Thanksgiving.
City regulations mandate that the massive inflatables cannot be flown when sustained winds are greater than 23 mph and gusts exceed 34 mph.
The National Weather Service is forecasting 22 mph sustained winds and gusts of 39 mph during the parade, while Accuweather is predicting sustained winds between 12 to 25 mph and gusts of up to 40 mph.
Given the mercurial nature of weather forecasts, officials will likely wait until Thursday to make a determination on if the balloons will fly.
The current regulations were implemented in 1998 after a gust of wind during the 1997 parade caused the Cat in the Hat balloon to injure four people, leaving a woman in a coma.
If the balloons are not flown, it will mark the first time since 1971. The first parade was held in 1924.
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