MARQUETTE, Mich (WZMQ) – Independence Day celebrations will be happening all this week with parades, festivals, and most notable of all, fireworks.
But Chris Durley from the Marquette Fourth of July Celebration Committee said there is a lot of work that goes into making the firework displays happen every year.
“There’s a lot of rules and regulations that the local and state regulatory agencies have,” said Durley. “Things that make sure you don’t trip wires off, and you don’t want to lean over the barrels. We put the shells down, we wire the shells, we wire them to the control board, it’s just a lot of wiring, and a lot of nimble finger work.”
So today a team of pyrotechnicians with the help of volunteers from the community spent the day setting up this year’s display.
Although only licensed pyrotechnicians can handle the shells and wiring, everything had to be moved out to the end of the ore dock by barge and unloaded, which one volunteer, an NMU student names Luke Odgers, said he was excited to help with.
“I mean it’s really unique,” said Odgers. “Being able to launch fireworks off and ore dock that is decommissioned is not very common, so the fact that we’re able to do that is really cool. I’m still new to the area, so really any opportunity I have to get involved with anything Marquette related I want to do that. I want to do my best to try to make this my community too.”
Like last year, the fireworks will be on July 3, along with a laser show on the ore dock on both July 3 and 4.
Mike Bradford from the Marquette Downtown Development Authority said the lasers are a great way to make sure everyone gets to celebrate Independence Day in their own way.
“Fireworks are loud,” said Bradford. “Not everybody can actually enjoy them. Like people with PTSD, and other people with sensory overload who are very sensitive to it, and lasers just seemed like a great opportunity.”
The fireworks and lasers will begin after sundown on both days to make sure they are clearly visible.
If it rains on the third, fireworks will be moved to the fourth and the laser show will be moved to the fifth.
