Washington Stages Record 40-Minute Fireworks Show for the 250th Birthday

Washington marked the nation’s 250th birthday on Saturday night with what organizers called the largest fireworks display in the city’s history, a 40-minute show launched after days of record heat and several weather-related delays. The Washington Examiner reported that the show featured a “record number of fireworks” after several weather delays.

President Trump’s Freedom 250 task force said the display would include more than 850,000 pyrotechnic effects, the Examiner reported. A standard Washington celebration runs about 17 minutes and uses roughly 17,000 to 20,000 fireworks, according to the same account. The show was launched from 10 locations, from the National Mall to West Potomac Park. Trump watched the display, the Examiner said.

The company behind the show, Pyrotecnico, is family-owned and led by president Rocco Vitale, who told CBS News before the event, “It is the biggest show that we’ve done.” CBS reported that the firm, which has worked on Super Bowls and large concerts, began planning in January and used computer simulations before the live setup. Each firing location had a GPS-synchronized communication device so the show would launch automatically at its programmed time. Organizers had scheduled Trump to speak at 9:45 p.m., with fireworks beginning at 10:45 p.m., and expected hundreds of thousands of people, CBS reported.

Reaching the evening was a challenge. An extreme heat warning covered the District, Maryland and Northern Virginia, and the area set record highs on July 2 and July 3, with a heat index that reached 112 degrees on Friday, NBC4 Washington reported. Forecasters had said temperatures could top 100 degrees on Saturday, with afternoon storms possible. D.C. Fire and EMS treated 44 people for heat-related illnesses at the Great American State Fair on Friday; 11 were taken to hospitals and seven were in more serious condition, according to NBC4.

Planners adjusted. The Salute to America event on the Mall planned to open its Washington Monument viewing zone at 5 p.m. on July 4 to reduce heat exposure, NBC4 reported, and cooling centers were open at air-conditioned libraries and community centers in most jurisdictions. Parades in Fairfax, Leesburg, Takoma Park and Laurel were canceled because of the heat, and Poolesville’s fireworks were postponed to Sunday for fear of severe storms. NBC4 reported that Metro riders could face delays from heat-related inspections and speed restrictions at above-ground stations on any of the six lines.

The show went ahead after the weather delays that preceded it, the Examiner reported.