Canada Day event will proceed, but without fireworks
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Loading... - Vittoria Riva
- 26 May 2022
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The City of Kamloops has cancelled the annual Canada Day fireworks display, which has for years lit up summer skies over the city at the end of the July 1 festivities.
Each year, myriad events take place on Canada Day downtown in Riverside Park. The day has long been capped by a dazzling fireworks display, which could be seen over the South Thompson River from many viewpoints in the city.
It is unclear if the cancellation will become permanent.
“It’s just for this year at this time,” the city’s business operations and events supervisor, Sean Smith. told KTW. “Hard to say what’s going to happen in the future.”
The city blames last year’s excessive heat and dry climate for fireworks not being included in this year’s Canada Day festivities, which will be the first since 2019, with the pandemic leading to cancellation of the event in 2021 and 2020.
Last year, a lightning storm on Canada Day followed a record-setting heat wave. Lightning sparked a fire in the hills between Juniper Ridge and Valleyview. Several other fires also broke out that night. The blaze in east Kamloops threatened homes and led to evacuations, but was doused by firefighters without structures lost.
Smith said the cancellation is due to a number of factors, including a dry spring so far in Kamloops.
“Playing it safe and being proactive in preventing anything from happening,” he said.
The Canada Day celebration on July 1 will begin with a pancake breakfast and feature Art in the Park, culture displays and presentations and community festivities and food.
The event also marks the first night of the popular Music in the Park, a nightly concert series that runs through July and August. Read More...
