The coronavirus pandemic has forced the cancellation of many much-loved events and traditions but the good people of New Orleans were not going to let it ruin their annual Mardi Gras.

When the mayor of the Louisiana city announced that the raucous, crowd-filled street carnival parades would not be going ahead, residents decided to turn their houses into floats instead.

Thousands have been transformed for the two-week long carnival that runs until Ash Wednesday in mid-February. In the picture below, you can see The Queen's Jubilee House.

A special project was set up encouraging home-owners to hire the many artists who would normally have months of work preparing for the event.

Some homes were decorated in honour of musicians, like the two in the pictures below that pay tribute to former New Orleans resident and jazz clarinet payer Pete Fountain.

The idea for the house floats came from a carnival regular, Megan Joy Boudreaux, who had suggested it in a post on Twitter after the mayor's announcement in November.

The idea for the house floats came from a carnival regular, Megan Joy Boudreaux, who had suggested it in a post on Twitter after the mayor's announcement in November.

And others evoked Zydeco music pioneers Boozoo Chavis and Clifton Chenier and the 'Cajun Hank Williams' DL Menard.

An online map of the decorated houses is being made available for people to visit in their own time and, it is hoped, in a socially-distanced way.