Covid-19 forces digital streaming of Stonehenge Summer solstice festival

Covid-19 forces digital streaming of Stonehenge Summer solstice festival
Copyright AP Photo
By Mark Armstrong with AP
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Coronavirus rules have forced the usual crowds of druids, pagans and other revelers to go online this year to witness the Summer solstice at Stonehenge

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The sun went down over England's famous Stonehenge monument on Saturday ahead of the June 21 Summer Solstice, the Northern Hemisphere's longest day of the year.

The difference was there were no crowds to witness the event because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the ban on public gatherings in the country.

In 2019, like every year, thousands of pagans, druids and assorted revellers flocked to the monument to watch the ancient stone circles align with the midsummer sunrise and the midwinter sunset.

This year, in order to comply with social distancing rules, revellers had to make do with the event being digitally streamed online by English Heritage.

The organisation says it plans to reopen Stonehenge in July, as UK authorities gradually lift lockdown measures imposed to halt the spread of COVID-19.

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