Residents of Marblehead, Massachusetts, won’t get the show they were hoping for after a late-night boat fire canceled the town’s annual fireworks show. “At first I thought it was a boat on fire drifting around,” said Kim Pandapas, a Marblehead resident. “I thought maybe someone had set off a firework and had an accident. But it didn’t move and the fire got bigger.” The fire broke out around 1 a.m. Thursday. The Marblehead Fire Department, Harbormaster, Beverly Fire Department, State Environmental Police and the U.S. Coast Guard were all on the scene battling the blaze. “It’s unfortunate because a lot of people look forward to it and make plans around the fireworks,” said resident Rich Newburg. The fireworks weren’t on the boat when the fire started. Normally, they’re loaded on board in the morning, hours before the fireworks show. “I got the reports at 2 a.m. this morning, so I’ve been up for a couple hours,” said Alexander Falk, Marblehead Fireworks Chairman. Falk said the barge was also being used for Wednesday night’s show in Lynn and Swampscott. Marblehead officials are still investigating the cause of the fire. The Marblehead Fireworks Committee said no one was on the barge and no injuries were reported. “Very disappointed, this is the second year in a row that the fog last year made people a little unhappy,” Falk said. Thursday night’s harbor lighting, which is normally held 15 minutes before fireworks, has also been canceled, police said. Organizers are asking residents to return any torches received for the lighting to the fire department so they can be reused in 2025. Falk said he is working with other organizers and city officials on alternative scenarios, including possibly rescheduling the show to another date. “The city of Marblehead and its residents and all the clubs in town and businesses in town are coming together to raise money for our show,” Falk said. “It’s one of the few shows in the country that is privately funded by donations.”
Residents of Marblehead, Massachusetts won’t get the spectacle they hoped for after a fire on a barge canceled the town’s annual overnight fireworks show.
“At first I thought it was a boat on fire and floating around,” said Kim Pandapas, a Marblehead resident. “I thought maybe someone had let off some fireworks and had an accident. But the boat didn’t move and the fire got bigger.”
The fire broke out around 1 a.m. Thursday. The Marblehead Fire Department, Harbormaster, Beverly Fire Department, State Environmental Police and the U.S. Coast Guard were all on the scene battling the blaze.
“It’s a shame because a lot of people look forward to it and make plans around the fireworks,” said resident Rich Newburg.
The fireworks were not on the boat when the fire started. Normally they are loaded onto the ship in the morning, a few hours before the display.
“I got the messages at 2 a.m., so I’ve been up for a couple hours,” said Alexander Falk, Marblehead’s fireworks chairman.
According to Falk, the boat was also used for Wednesday night’s show in Lynn and Swampscott.
Marblehead officials are still investigating the cause of the fire. According to the Marblehead Fireworks Committee, no one was on the boat and no injuries were reported.
“I am very disappointed. It is the second year in a row that last year’s fog was so bad that people were not happy with it,” Falk said.
The harbour lighting on Thursday evening, which normally takes place 15 minutes before fireworks are set off, has also been cancelled, according to the police.
The organizers are asking residents to return all received torches for lighting to the fire department so that they can be reused in 2025.
According to Falk, he is working with other organizers and city officials on alternative scenarios, including possibly moving the show to another date.
“The city of Marblehead and its residents and all the clubs in town and businesses in town come together to raise money for our show,” Falk said. “It’s one of the few shows in the country that is privately funded by donations.”