Detroit Fire and Ice Festival forges ahead despite frigid temperatures
The brutal temperatures and sub-zero wind chills are forcing many communities to cancel events this weekend, except here in Detroit.
If you're planning on bracing the winter weather at the Detroit Fire & Ice Festival, organizers tell CBS News Detroit they've got you covered.
Going on six years, the Fire and Ice Festival at Robert C. Valade Park is expected to be bigger, better and set to carry on despite this weekend's bone-chilling temperatures.
"For a lot of people, it's like the winter event to go to, so we didn't want to reschedule it," said Detroit Riverfront Conservancy director of public relations Marc Pasco.
Pasco says the festival was originally scheduled a few weeks ago but had to be postponed.
"It was a lot of rain and unseasonably warm temperatures. So, we postponed it by a couple weeks, and here we are on the flipside of the weather, and it's unseasonably cold. Sometimes you can't win, and you make the best of it," Pasco said.
Despite the winter weather woes, Pasco says he's confident the festival will attract an impressive turnout.
Every year, the events that are a part of the Winter at Valade program at the park bring in nearly 50,000 people.
"We're asking everyone to bundle up, dress appropriately for the weather," said Pasco.
If people need a break, folks will have access to an indoor shed to hunker down and get warm. The event will also offer outdoor fireplaces, warm food, and volunteers will provide hand warmers and gloves until they run out.
"We didn't want to disappoint people. We figured, yeah, we have the infrastructure in place, the warmth of the shed here, outdoor fireplaces ... I think people will be fine," Pasco said.
Check out the full list of canceled events across Metro Detroit this weekend here.