Carnival roars ahead in Brazil despite Zika health scare

The worst health scare in recent history is not keeping Brazilians from their annual Carnival revelry, with millions of partiers swarming streets and some making fun of the mosquito that spreads Zika and other viruses. "It's one more thing to worry about," said Juliana Araujo, a 48-year-old schoolteacher at a street party in Rio de Janeiro, where other problems, like an economic recession and impeachment proceedings against Brazil's president, seemed distant concerns. Recent news that traces of the virus had been identified in blood, saliva and other bodily fluids of patients known to have been infected with Zika would not do much to dampen a festival known for its fair share of casual sex, she predicted: "People aren't going to stop having fun and hooking up." Over a million people hit the streets in cities like Rio, home to the country's best-known Carnival celebration, and the northeastern capitals of Salvador and Recife, two cities hard hit by the outbreak.