Wind Threatens Aflac Duck's New York Parade Appearance

By Allison Bell

News November 27, 2019 at 12:22 PM

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The Aflac Duck in a parade. (Credit: Aflac)

Aflac Inc. uses the Aflac Duck to promote the idea that its products can protect people against unexpected problems.

Now, the spokesduck may need some protection against the weather.

Aflac has been getting a 30-foot-tall version of the duck ready to appear Thursday in New York, in the 93rd annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

One concern is the possibility that the wind speed in New York could go over 30 miles per hour Thursday.

New York officials ground parade character balloons, for safety reasons, when sustained wind speeds exceed 23 miles per hour, and when sustained winds exceed 34 miles per hour, according to a report by Jenna DeAngelis for CBS New York.

Parade balloon inflation is supposed to start at 1 p.m. today.

The parade is supposed to appear on NBC from 9 a.m. through noon Thursday.

AccuWeather 24-hour hourly wind speed forecasts show that sustained wind speeds could rise to 25 miles per hour at 5 p.m. and that gusts could rise as high as 40 miles per hour around Thursday morning.

CBS New York is reporting that officials will decide what to do about the character balloons tomorrow morning.

If the character balloons get to march, the Aflac Duck could get the attention of about 3.5 million spectators on New York's streets, and about 50 million people watching the parade on TV, according to Aflac.

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