Epiphany Celebration 2015 Road Closings Announced

Motorists planning to travel through north Pinellas County Tuesday might want to avoid a few roads in the Tarpon Springs area as residents there prepare for the Epiphany Celebration.

The Tarpon Springs Police Department has announced the following detours, which are expected to last from about 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.:

• Northbound traffic on Alternate 19 (Pinellas Avenue) will be turned east onto Lemon Street to Disston Avenue
• Southbound traffic on Alternate 19 (Pinellas Avenue) will be turned east onto Pine Street to Disston Avenue
• Tarpon Avenue westbound traffic will be detoured either north or south onto Disston Avenue
• to Pine or Lemon to Alternate 19

The annual Epiphany celebration draws thousands of visitors to Tarpon Springs each year. Epiphany commemorates the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River.

“In the old country, Jesus Christ’s baptismal day was celebrated with spiritual emotion and long procession,” the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks website states. ”Following tradition, the Greek community established that January the 6th of each year will be celebrated with the sanctification of the waters and the immersion of the cross in the Spring Bayou on ’Cross Day’ or ’Epiphany’.”

The first recognition of Epiphany in Tarpon Springs was held in 1903.

This year’s procession to Spring Bayou is expected to begin around 12:15 p.m. Tuesday with a blessing of the bayou and casting of the cross set for 1 p.m.

For more information on the annual celebration, visit St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral online.

Patch file photo