'A sad day': Beads in short supply for Galveston Mardi Gras

What would Mardi Gras be without beads? It’s a frightening thought, but a possibility with Mardi Gras Galveston six weeks away.

Beads are in short supply for the much-anticipated annual event that was canceled last year due to COVID-19. Three million beads were ordered from event organizers but may not arrive in time.

“Currently I'm tracking our ship in the middle of the Pacific that has our beads on it," Mike Dean of the president of Yaga’s Entertainment told KHOU-11.

Dean said those who didn’t order their beads early could be out of luck. Others can explore alternative options. Life Skills students at Ball High School are re-packaging the recycled beads from past Mardi Gras events and selling them.

“We take the beads and we sort them. Then we package them, and we sell them," Darren Muren, a teacher at Ball High School told KHOU-11. 

Dean applauded that. 

“This is a heartfelt, good program to buy beads from,” he said.

Beads won’t be necessary if the event is called off because of the rise in COVID-19 cases, which is the highest ever in Galveston. County health officials recorded the highest number of new cases ever reported with 893 on Jan. 2.

The COVID-19 outbreak forced the cancelation of the 2021 version of one of Galveston's time-honored events. In December 2020, Galveston City Council unanimously approved the cancellation of Mardi Gras for last year. 

Dean hopes it doesn’t come to that this year. 

“If the state said we couldn’t do it, then we wouldn’t do it,” he told KHOU-11. “So we would cancel and then take our financial wounds and move on. And it would be a sad day.”