Raleigh 4th of July Fireworks plagued by rain, lightning, technical problems
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- People were left confused Thursday night after the Raleigh 4th of July Fireworks celebration came to a sudden stop.
Gates opened at Dix Park at 6 p.m. and people reveled in the festivities. They braved the oppressive heat to celebrate the holiday together and experience a brilliant fireworks show. Then, before the show could start, a rain storm moved through the area.
The rain dampened everything in the park, but everybody was optimistic that the fireworks show would continue as planned because there was no lightning associated with the rain storm.
Until there was.
One bolt of lightning flashed through the sky shortly before 9:30 p.m.
DJ Rickey Smith, who was on the main stage entertaining the crowd said a member of the stage production management team told him to clear the stage because of the lightning.
Smith then told the crowd that the fireworks show was canceled and everybody in the park needed to go home.
"When I know, my system is going to get shut off I have about 10 seconds to decide what do I say and that's the hard part. So, I reiterated what was told to me. It was you have to evacuate the area in a calm, orderly fashion," Smith said.
Due to lightning, ABC11 ended its public broadcast of the show.
Minutes later, fireworks started shooting off above Dix Park. Those fireworks lasted for sometime between 6-10 minutes, which is less than half of how long the fireworks show was scheduled to last.
The City of Raleigh said the fireworks vendor experienced a malfunction a few minutes after the show began. That malfunction combined with other safety issues caused the vendor to abbreviate the show.
Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin issued the following statement Thursday night at around 11:05 p.m.:
"The City's Fourth of July fireworks show was not the grand display that we planned. We had a rain delay and the threat of lightning. Out of an abundance of caution, we paused the show. When the rain subsided and lightning did not present a danger, we made a decision to proceed. Technical difficulties shortened the show. The fireworks will not be rescheduled but we appreciate all who came out to celebrate July 4th."
The city released a short statement at 9:30 a.m. Friday via its social media.
The City of Raleigh later released the following more detailed statement at 3:20 p.m. Friday:
"Last night at our Fourth of July celebration, the weather changed rapidly as the time for fireworks approached, and the City was evaluating the overall safety of the event. We decided to pause the show due to weather concerns, rather than cancel the show and end the festivities for all at the park and viewing audience at their homes. The event text alerts system could have disseminated this information for the attendees of the event, however, we didn't deploy this tool. We had hoped that the pause would have allowed the weather to subside and resume the event as planned. That did not happen.
While the show was paused, an announcement was made in error from the stage that the fireworks would not happen and that the crowd should leave. That was not a decision made or authorized by the City. At the discretion of our media partner, the public broadcast of the show was ended due to lightning.
The fireworks began after the pause for weather. The fireworks vendor experienced a malfunction a few minutes after the show began. Because of that and other safety factors, the permitting agency ended the show earlier than scheduled. This and all decisions during an event are always made with public safety first.
We want to thank the approximately 22,000 people who came out for the celebration. The diverse crowd of all ages and backgrounds kept a fun and joyful vibe throughout the evening. With the extra safety measures for heat and everyone's caution, we were still able to have an enjoyable event prior to the firework show with no major incidents. We are glad that so many could celebrate America's independence safely as a community."
DJ Rickey Smith sent this full statement describing what happened from his perspective:
"To all who came out to Dix Park and brought their energy and excitement, thank you! The entire day was filled with joy, happiness, and fun, and it was an absolute pleasure to lead the way for everyone. Your enthusiasm made the event truly special."
"At the end of the night, I was informed by the production company that due to lighting in the area, I needed to announce to everyone to "safely and calmly evacuate the area" and that "the equipment needed to be shut down." This is standard procedure for any production company, as safety always comes first. While the evacuation notice was intended specifically for the stage area, in the rush and with limited time before shutting down the sound system, I did not specify this."
"Beyond the directive to inform the crowd to evacuate, I had no additional information at the time. I was not told if the show would continue, nor was I informed that it was the end of the show. Furthermore, I had no clarity from the city or any information on what the rain plan would be ahead of time. I spent the time between having the equipment shut down and the fireworks sheltering in place in the production booth."
"I was never given any updates from city staff at any point. I had limited time to inform the crowd of the situation before I had to exit the stage myself, so I shared everything I knew with attendees before handing off the microphone and sheltering in place with the production team."
"While I was not surprised that the event team was making every effort to have the fireworks show happen, its actual start was a surprise to both myself and the production crew. We were also not informed that the show would be abbreviated. Had I known, I would have made an announcement to the crowd."
"Running an event on a 300+ acre site with 40,000+ attendees is incredibly challenging. There are many aspects of the show that even I do not have visibility on. I want to acknowledge and thank all of the event staff and vendors for their hard work yesterday."
"I am excited about the vision for Dix Park and its future as a world-class events venue. No road to success is free of road bumps, and I look forward to many more successful events in the future."
Putting on a brave face
Jaden Tapia and her mom Stephanie traveled to Raleigh from Fayetteville to see the fireworks. She said her mom is in town visiting for the holiday.
"This is what I come from California to this...she planned this whole thing and this is what happened," Tapia said.
Families like Tasha Smith and her daughter, Monique, tried to keep a positive outlook on the evening's events.
"Yeah, that's wonderful I was looking forward to it, tried to plan it," she said. "I wanted to come by to with my 5-year-old to do something...this was a nice event where we could put our blankets down and relax and spend time with family."
The same goes for Alan Caille, his wife and their 14-month-old daughter who all moved to North Carolina from Massachusetts last week.
"This is the best country ever...look at what I have because of this country," Caille said.
