DUNEDIN - It was supposed to be a night to eat gumbo, listen to New Orleans style-music and watch the reigning queen float down Douglas Avenue.
Instead the 13th annual Mardi Gras in Dunedin turned into a washout.
The rain that started in the early afternoon Tuesday and continued throughout the evening kept many would-be festivalgoers at home. The National Weather Service calculated about 1 to 1.5 inches of rain fell Tuesday, which forced organizers to cancel the 60-float parade about 4 p.m. They made tentative plans to reschedule it for Saturday.
"Everybody is really on board for doing it Saturday," said Greg Brady, president of the Downtown Dunedin Merchants Association. "If we all push for it, it will happen. The promotional value is very important to the city and the merchants association."
Brady said he has contacted the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, along with other planning organizations, to see if a Saturday celebration would be feasible; he expected to have an answer this morning.
In the meantime, some of the revelers who showed up Tuesday made sure not to let the downpour rain on their parade. Some even sported the traditional Mardi Gras beads.
"They canceled the parade, but they can't cancel Mardi Gras," said Laura Kerns, who had planned to ride on one of the floats. She wore colorful beads around her neck.
Her friend Angie Dimarco was also festive. She had on beads depicting Nemo, among other things, all imported from New Orleans.
The women were part of a larger group from the Palm Pavilion float. When the parade was rained out, they decided to hang out at Kelly's on Main Street instead.
"I'm pretty bummed with the weather, since we had a float," Dimarco said. "If it continues on Saturday, it will be cool."
Mardi Gras came to New Orleans through its French heritage in 1699. Explorers celebrated the holiday on the banks of the Mississippi River. New Orleans' celebration is now a huge draw for the city, with tourists packing the French Quarter in search of beads and parades.
While New Orleans' Mardi Gras this year was marred by two festival-related deaths, a fatal accident in the Mississippi River that stranded cruise ship passengers and rain throughout the day, the show still went on.
The Dunedin celebration is much smaller than the one in New Orleans, but many local festivalgoers find it to be a suitable substitute. The event usually draws about 35,000 people to downtown Dunedin.
The Saturday celebration could draw those kinds of numbers, although it won't be the same celebration. Mardi Gras is always held the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.
Jay and Paula Rhodes of Dunedin say Saturday won't do. They have to work.
"I don't think you can have Mardi Gras on a Saturday," said Jay Rhodes. "How can you have Fat Tuesday on a Saturday?"
Linda Berry expressed her disappointment that the parade was canceled. She had driven all the way from St. Pete Beach for the party. Berry used to live in New Orleans.
"How can you cancel Mardi Gras?" she asked "What's a little bit of rain? In New Orleans, they don't cancel anything."
