NEW YORK, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday became a compressed event live on TV, stretching just one block in front of the iconic department store's Herald Square headquarters, in order to keep people safe amid the raging COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year, more than 3.5 million parade-watchers lined the 2.5-mile route from the Upper West Side to Herald Square. This year, as the parade happened, at least 24,241 people have died of the coronavirus in the past nine months in New York City. Confirmed cases stood at 302,522.

To avoid attracting crowds, much of what viewers saw on television Thursday morning was not live at all, but pre-recorded. Most of the balloons shown throughout the telecast were from parades from previous NBC broadcasts, New York Post quoted Macy's parade officials as saying.

Also pre-recorded were appearances by Dolly Parton, who sang "Holly Jolly Christmas," Darlene Love singing "Marshmallow World," and Patti LaBelle who crooned "It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year." Telecast viewers were also treated to some pre-recorded Broadway performances, said the paper.

The number of live participants was reduced by 88 percent, according to a report of Variety.

The annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, the world's largest parade, is presented by U.S. department store chain Macy's. The parade started in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit. Enditem