Series of sporting events and shows across LA County canceled, postponed due to spike in COVID cases
The increase is coming as the omicron variant is making its way across the country, now detected in 39 states.
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- If you've got tickets to a big event coming up soon, you might want to check with the venue to see if it's still on.
A number of Los Angeles-area events have been canceled or postponed this weekend as the county is reporting its highest number of daily infections in nearly four months.
The county reported 3,360 new cases in its daily update issued Friday. That daily case number had previously remained consistently below 3,000 since late August.
The county also reported 27 additional deaths from COVID-19, and 772 people currently hospitalized. Hospitalizations hadn't been over 700 since early October.
The increase is coming as the omicron variant is making its way across the country, now detected in 39 states.
Here are some events to look out for:
UCLA-North Carolina men's basketball game
UCLA's men's basketball game against North Carolina planned for Saturday in Las Vegas was canceled due to COVID developments within the Bruins' program, the university announced.
UCLA's team-related activities have been paused, and the status of future games is to be determined.
Plus, according to a tweet posted Saturday afternoon, the Bruins will no longer play against Cal Poly in a nonconference game at Pauley Pavilion on Wednesday.
UCLA said the game was canceled due to COVID developments within the Bruins' program and will not be rescheduled.
Other team-related activities have been paused and the status of future games is to be determined, according to UCLA.
Rams-Seahawks
The NFL has rescheduled at least three games because of high numbers of players testing positive. The includes the Rams-Seahawks game which had been set for Sunday at SoFi Stadium but is now pushed back to Tuesday.
Nearly 30 Rams players are going through COVID protocols, including stars Odell Beckham Jr., Von Miller and Jalen Ramsey.
Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks game against the Flames which had been set for Tuesday in Calgary has been postponed for COVID-related reasons, with no new date announced yet.
Performances
Performances of "A Christmas Carol'' at the Ahmanson Theatre in downtown L.A. through Dec. 26 have been canceled after additional breakthrough cases were detected within the company, the Center Theatre Group announced.
Performances are scheduled to resume Dec. 28, Jason Martin, the head of publicity for the Center Theatre Group, said Friday.
Thursday's planned performance was also canceled "for the wellness and safety of our guests, cast and crew,'' along with performances planned for Friday and Saturday, Martin said.
Ticket holders will be contacted shortly with rebooking or refund options and should contact their original point of purchase with questions, Martin said.
Stricter COVID protocols
L.A. County is fighting back against the increase with new sets of rules for attendance at large gatherings.
Stricter COVID-19 protocols to get into large events in LA County start today
Starting Friday, if you want to get into any kind of mega event, either inside or outdoors, you'll need to show proof of being fully vaccinated, or recent negative test results. If you get an antigen test, it has to be within one day of the event, while for a PCR test it's two days.
"While things are definitely not going in the direction we want them to, we do have more tools to help protect ourselves this year than we did at this time last year, but we urgently need to use them," said county health director Barbara Ferrer.
But even getting a rapid test is turning out to be more challenging these days.
While the Dodger Stadium parking lot has reopened as a testing site, many local drugstores are out of stock for the at-home test kits.
Local leaders are reminding residents to be vigilant during the holidays.
"Get boosted," said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. "Get vaccinated if you still haven't. And make sure you practice the safe social distancingso we'll get through the holidays without the deaths we saw last year."
City News Service contributed to this report.
