How to Play It Safe While Attending the Allstate Sugar Bowl New Year’s Eve Parade

The 88th annual Allstate Sugar Bowl is set to take place on January 1, 2022 at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. The 2022 matchup will be between Baylor (11-2) and Ole Miss (10-2). While an exciting matchup is expected between these two teams that have achieved surprising success with second-year coaches, for some people the real excitement will be the day before. 

The Allstate Sugar Bowl New Year’s Eve Parade is a Mardi Gras-style parade that shouldn’t be missed. Each year the parade has unforgettable bands, floats, and parade performers galore. The New Orleans personal injury lawyers at Mike Brandner Law hopes that you have fun, but play it safe at the Allstate Sugar Bowl New Year’s Eve Parade by following these tips.

Pick a Safe Spot to Watch

The Allstate Sugar Bowl New Year’s Eve Parade begins about 2:30 p.m. at the Elysian Fields Avenue and Decatur Street intersection and will run from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. Parade participants will travel up Decatur along the Mississippi River and through the French Quarter. At approximately 3:30, it will pass the WDSU main stage located inside Jax Brewery. Parade performers will stop here to do a two-minute show before continuing along the parade route and finish up on Canal Street.

Know the parade route and arrive early so you can scout for good places to watch the event before it gets too crowded. Look for spots that allow an unobstructed view, but also provide a quick escape route should a dangerous situation arise. This could potentially include a car accident that injures the crowd, as seen at the Endymion Mardi Gras parade in 2017. Nearly 50 attendees were injured and four killed in a similar incident during the OSU Homecoming parade in May 2015.

Parade Safety Tips

There are many opportunities for injuries to occur anytime you attend a large event, but tips from our personal injury lawyers in New Orleans can help boost safety awareness. Since it’s an outdoor event, start by bringing necessary supplies like sunscreen and plenty of water. While the weather forecast calls for temperatures in the 70s, cloud cover can make it feel cooler.

Other parade safety tips include:

• Stay behind the barriers, which are there for your protection.
• Dress appropriately by wearing layers you can easily remove if you become too warm.
• Don’t allow children to run into the street to retrieve items.
• Avoid the thickest part of a crowd to prevent crushing or trampling in an emergency.
• Use the buddy system, especially single females.
• Charge your phones, so you can stay in touch with each other or call emergency personnel.
• Don’t walk near floats.
• Select a meeting place in case of separation.
• Tell children to only speak to police officers or security personnel and never go with a stranger.
• Don’t allow children to eat candy thrown from floats/parade vehicles until you inspect it.
• Don’t wear expensive items and keep wallets and purses close to your body.
• Leave your pet(s) at home.
• Pay attention and if you see something suspicious, report it.

New Year’s Eve celebrants use the parade as a kickoff to 2022, so prepare for drunk fellow attendees and persons in your group. Designate a driver if your group will be imbibing to ensure someone stays sober enough to drive. Or, call for a ride. Ride sharing apps offer a safe alternative too.

Hire Top Personal Injury Lawyers in New Orleans

If you’re hurt during a parade or other large event due to someone else’s negligence, call the personal injury attorneys in New Orleans at Mike Brandner Law. Our office is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., but we’ll take your call 24/7 at the numbers listed below. You can also use our convenient LiveChat feature. We offer free consultations and there’s never a fee, unless we win your case!