Hundreds of thousands of spectators have already taken in this year’s Honda Celebration of Light, and hundreds of thousands more are expected for the final night this weekend.
Team Canada will dazzle the crowd Saturday night, following Japan last Saturday and the United Kingdom on Wednesday.
In an effort to spread the crowd out a bit, some of the pre-festival activities, including musical performances and kids’ activities, have been moved to Second Beach. The fireworks show will be also visible from Second Beach, with a partially obstructed view.
“We’re also encouraging people to come down a little earlier as part of the ability to manage crowds, to filter them through throughout the afternoon,” Paul Tilbury, co-chair of the Vancouver Fireworks Festival Society, said last week.
Vancouver and transit police are also ready to deal with the crowds.
Vancouver police said crowd size fluctuates from night to night but the department has plans in place to deal with up to half a million people. Last year, police were caught off guard by the number of people who came out for the final night.
“As a result this year we have adjusted our plans accordingly to make sure we’re able to have people enter and leave safely,” said Supt. Michelle Davies.
Transit police acting Chief Barry Kross encouraged people, especially those in a large group, to have a plan in place in case the group gets separated. He also said officers will have zero tolerance for alcohol. Anyone caught with booze could be subject to a $230 fine.
Nicholas Mann with B.C. Ambulance said there will be additional paramedics on hand, with some on bikes and ATVs, which are “invaluable in large crowds,” he said.
In the event of an emergency during the event, Mann said it’s still best to call 911.
“Please be aware of your location,” he said, adding it helps to know street names or large landmarks nearby.
Once the show is over and the crowds have disbursed, “a small army” comes in to start cleaning up, said Albert Shamess, Vancouver’s director of zero waste and resource recovery. He said the city has 200 extra garbage cans out for the event and encourages the public to use reusable containers as much as possible, and consider taking their garbage with them when they leave.
Before each show, a team of pyrotechnics professionals is working away on the barge, which is actually two barges joined stern to stern, getting ready for tomorrow’s show.
A crew of 10 from Sirius Pyrotechnics is working with the international teams of four to eight people to prepare for each show. The crews work 10-12 hour days for three days straight ahead of each night, said Kelly Guille, chief fireworks producer with Sirius.
“It’s just a big sandbox with a deeper sandbox at the end where we allow teams to decide how they want their mortars split up,” Guille said. “We have max angles but other than that they can choose if they want to criss-cross, they can choose how that’s set up.”
Come show time, just Guille and three others will be on the barge to fire the show from the safety of a bunker at the far end of the barge. It’s all controlled and pre-set by computer.
After each show, a crew comes in to clean up and prepare the barge for the next team.
And the whole process starts over again to get ready for the next show.
For more information about Celebration of Light, visit hondacelebrationoflight.com.
Dos and don’ts of celebration of light:
- Don’t bring alcohol — $230 fine
- Don’t smoke in parks or on beaches — $250 fine
- If you do smoke, put it out properly — $500 fine
- Don’t litter — dispose of garbage in the proper receptacle, or take it with you
- Do be prepared — bring lots of water and food — you could be there longer than anticipated
- Do be sun safe — wear sunscreen and a hat
- Don’t bring or fly drones — it’s illegal over crowds
- Don’t drive, if possible — take transit, walk or bike
