City won't allow Canada Day fireworks, a decision that surprised organizers who had planned to host the annual event in spite of shutting down all other July 1 activities.--NEWS FILE PHOTO
cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant
A complete ban on city activities until Aug. 31 will also nix the potential of a standalone Canada Day fireworks show, even without the traditional day-long festivities at Kin Coulee, city emergency officials said Tuesday.
That caught organizers off guard, the News has learned, after they hoped that a pyrotechnic display could be staged as a moral-boost for Hatters. As recently as last week they said they hoped to work out a plan with Alberta Health and the city for the show to go on while avoiding groupings of residents.
That however, is “just not reasonable,” according to city director of emergency management Merrick Brown, citing a two-metre rule for physical distance and avoiding groups of 15 people.
“We are cancelling the Canada Day fireworks,” Brown said Tuesday. “We understand it may create some tension in the community, but it’s due to orders set out by the province.
“We don’t feel confident that we can maintain (health order standards) as a whole across the whole city as fireworks occur.”
In late April the province mandated that all festivals and large public events be cancelled until the end of summer – an announcement that cemented previous cancellations of events like Spectrum, JazzFest, the Medicine Hat Exhibition & Stampede, among other events, including the day-long gathering for birthday cake, music and activities on Canada Day in Kin Coulee that draws upwards of 40,000 visitors.
“We knew long ago there was just no way to hold it safely,” Garry Proctor, chair fo the Canada Day Society told the News, but in terms of the fireworks, Tuesday’s announcement “caught us totally off guard. There’s been no communication.”
The society placed a deposit on the 2020 fireworks show that typically costs about $20,000 each year, but that will roll over to 2021, in case of cancellation.
The group is also planning to create video compilations of previous local celebrations, musical acts and fireworks shows to put online on July 1.
Mayor Ted Clugston told reporters Tuesday that the Canada Day Society would have the full support of council to provide “the best ever” show next year if they are allowed to proceed.
“There’s a desire to watch fireworks in a gathering,” said Clugston.
“If we closed off Kin Coulee, I think we all know that there are a lot of backyards that host parties where you could get a hundred people.
“This takes away that temptation.”
Brown also outlined that the city’s cancellation to Aug. 31 would include activities on sports fields, which means the majority of organized sports would be cancelled as well.
“As (the province) moves to stage two and three of a (provincial government) launch strategy, that may soften up, but we want to communicate well in advance that we are not permitting any events to occur until Aug. 31,” he said.
“The majority of events have already been cancelled.”
