The National Rifle Association has officially cancelled its upcoming Annual Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, which was set to kick off on April 16th and run through the 19th, with events throughout the downtown area.

In a statement posted on the NRA’s website, the organization said that it reluctantly made the decision to cancel the event, which was expected to draw 80,000 or more gun owners to Nashville, after “closely monitoring updates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Tennessee Department of Health,” and noting that the governor of Tennessee declared a state of emergency earlier on Thursday.

Therefore, we have reluctantly decided to cancel this year’s NRA Annual Meeting, planned for April 16 – 19 in Nashville. This applies to all events and scheduled programs, including the NRA-ILA Forum. We sincerely regret the need for this action, particularly for our many loyal members who join us for this annual celebration of the NRA and our constitutional freedoms. Details regarding a rescheduled NRA Members’ Meeting will be forthcoming.

Under the direction of NRA President Carolyn Meadows, the NRA Board of Directors is working with the Office of the Secretary in relation to board elections, meetings, and the like.

Please know that we did not reach this decision lightly. We were ultimately guided by our responsibility to help ensure the safety and well-being of our NRA members, guests, and surrounding community.

Please coordinate directly with any hotels, airlines or others who have assisted with your travel arrangements. Most companies have announced plans to accommodate travelers dealing with event cancellations.

Given the timing of the convention and the amount of closures that we’ve seen in the past two days, this isn’t a huge surprise. I think everyone is hoping that by mid-April, the worst will have passed and we’ll be getting back to normal, but the truth is that we don’t know that will be the case. With so much uncertainty, it was the safe move and the right call to cancel the Annual Meeting, though I know I and tens of thousands of members are disappointed that we won’t be able to get together for what I call the world’s biggest family reunion.

The loss of the NRA Annual Meeting will certainly be felt by the city of Nashville as well. The economic impact of the NRA convention every year is somewhere in the range of $50 to 65-million, and the city is already reeling from the tornado that struck earlier this month. The decision to cancel the event may also have a political impact with the loss of the NRA-ILA leadership forum, and the NRA won’t be able to hold its fundraising events that weekend either. The NRA Annual meeting is a big deal, and so is its cancellation.

We’ll have more on the cancellation and its impact here on Bearing Arms, but in the meantime if you want more information you can visit nraam.org for more details.