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Weather and anniversary boost Street Parade

The Zurich Street Parade, which celebrated its 20th anniversary on Saturday, attracted around 900,000 people this year, organisers have said.

There were 29 “love mobiles”, with the first one featuring the event’s founder Marek Krynski. The parade was largely peaceful, but medics were busier than in 2010.

The Street Parade said that the weather had been perfect – 25 degrees – and the atmosphere excellent. Last year only 650,000 people attended the parade because of bad weather.

Also an attraction was the jubilee. The Street Parade was founded in 1992 by the then student Krynski, who played music from the 1990s on his float. Krynski, who now works for a big Swiss bank, told swissinfo.ch ahead of the parade that the main secret of the Street Parade’s success was that techno and house music fostered happiness.
 
“This sense of happiness grows when it’s shared and the Street Parade is the best way of sharing this happiness,” he said.
 
Local police said the event only witnessed a few disturbances. However, the city’s protection and rescue service said it treated 670 people – 226 more than in last year. Main causes of complaint were cuts, insect bites or stings, and too much alcohol or drugs. There were no major injuries, but 49 people nevertheless went to hospital (53 in 2010).

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SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR