Skies over Key Biscayne on July 4th will come alive with explosions of fire and light
Splendor in the sky - with patriotic reflections across Biscayne Bay - returns Thursday evening, the grand finale of the 65th annual Key Biscayne Fourth of July Parade and festivities.
"Spectacular" is how Village Manager Steve Williamson describes it.
The estimated 25-minute show, which includes 4,350 fireworks shells, will again be choreographed to patriotic and vintage hits and simulcast on WDNA FM 88.9 beginning at 9 p.m. Sandi Patty's rendition of the national anthem accompanies the collection of closing explosions.
For a quarter century, Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces Director Todd Hofferberth has been in charge of landing a contract with the famed Fireworks By Grucci, Inc. from Bellport, N.Y., now entering its sixth generation of family professionals.
"They've performed well for us over the years and they're renowned in the business with their pyro-musical shows," Hofferberth said. "We've had the same crew leader for years, and almost the entire crew has come repeatedly. We welcome their consistency and being familiar with our show."
The fireworks are set aboard a barge about 1,000 feet offshore of the Key Biscayne Beach Club.
Key Biscayne Fire Rescue Chief Eric Lang said his staff must sign off on the permit, and Deputy Chief Marcos Osorio and his staff must critically inspect the barge during a test run.
"Since 2007, I don't think I've missed a fireworks show," Lang said. "Grucci has been an absolute pleasure to work with. They're organized safe, and they know what they're doing. Having great partners you have trust in makes a huge difference. I expect another amazing show."
According to a historical account by Islander News correspondent Bill Durham, Jim Brewster organized fireworks shows for the Key Biscayne Yacht Club in the 1980s. Then, when the Village was established in 1992, he became the unofficial fireworks commissioner who organized the first official Village fireworks celebration. "It was, by all accounts, spectacular," Durham wrote.
And despite some Village Council requests to investigate the possibility of future drone and laser shows, the fireworks show on the beach still produces "wow!" moments or even tears of joy from those who observe the majestic beauty.
Fireworks by Grucci, which has Italian origins dating back to the 1850s on Long Island as a "side job," has been officially producing full-time shows since the 1920s, when third-generation owner Felix Grucci took over. Since then, the company has launched skyrockets for seven consecutive U.S. presidential inaugurations and several Olympic Games, such as in Beijing, Salt Lake City and Los Angeles.
Referred to as the " First Family of Fireworks ," Grucci puts on some 200 shows throughout the year across the U.S. Key Biscayne is one of 85 locations for shows on July 4, joining Las Vegas, Macy's in New York City, and even the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The company, which employs 160 factory workers, 30 office workers and 400 part-time pyrotechnicians worldwide, set a Guinness world record on New Year's Eve in 2014 by firing off 480,000 shells in 6 minutes into the skies above Dubai, about ten times the capacity used for the Macy's show, the largest patriotic performance in America.
"We put our heart into every program because we're putting our brand — our family name and our heritage — on every single performance," Grucci once said. "We have to treat each one of them like it's the first one."
The village's cost for this year's fireworks is $190,000, with incremental increases over the next few years. If the five-year deal were to be extended, the total cost would be $990,100, according to Hofferberth, who laid out those prices at a Village Council meeting earlier this year.
"We know how important the show is to the community," he said.
