Extreme weather update: Albany, Georgia, Mardi Gras was a huge success (38,000 guests) on a 73-degree day last March; the same event was a huge flop this year (6,000 guests) on a 44-degree day

Albany, Georgia | UPDATED: Cold weather chills Mardi Gras turnout

ALBANY, Ga. — Temperatures weren't the only numbers dropping this weekend.  [High of 44 degrees]
Organizers for the Mardi Gras Street festival, one of the city's biggest events each year, only saw about 6,000 people wander through the gates Saturday. At it's peak, more than 30,000 have graced downtown during the event.
Tommy Gregors, one of the organizers of the event, said that the cold weather likely kept many folks at home.
"In 11 years of putting this event on, this was the coldest Mardi Gras on record," Gregors said.
Gregors said that he believes weather was the main reason why people stayed indoors Saturday rather than venture out downtown.

March 2012 | Organizers: 38,000-plus participated in Mardi Gras festivities

ALBANY — Albany's signature downtown festival welcomed more than 38,000 guests Saturday [High of 73 degrees], organizers say, making it one of the best attended Mardi Gras festivals to date.
Phil Cannon, one of the three original founders of the event, said Monday that early estimates put the crowd between 38,000 and 39,000, which would make it the second-largest Mardi Gras in terms of attendance on record...The funds generated by the $5 admission fee will help pay for next year's event, Cannon said. The event grows in size and cost each year. The price tag on the 2012 Mardi Gras Festival was more than $50,000, he said.

For tourism officials, having 38,000 people, many of whom don't live in Dougherty County, in downtown Saturday was a boon to the local economy.