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By JOYANNA LOVE/ Senior Staff Writer

Organizers of the popular En Fuego Festival usually held in August in Verbena have announced that the event will be canceled this year.

“Like many others, we have been closely monitoring the coronavirus situation. It is with tremendous sadness that we share the difficult decision made by the En Fuego board of directors to cancel,” the group posted on its Facebook page. “Since En Fuego is a free event and depends almost entirely on donations from individuals, small businesses, and churches to fund the event, we feel it would be impossible for us to hold the festival in August considering the current economic crisis we are facing.”

Rescheduling the event for later in the year was not an option.

“We share the disappointment that many people will feel with this news, but the safety of all of our festivalgoers, artists, and our staff is of utmost importance,” the post stated.

The En Fuego board hopes to make the 2021 event, which will be the 25th anniversary of the festival, better than ever.

“We will now put our energies into making it a great celebration of that milestone,” the organization said. “We hope you will make plans now to join us for that event.”