This 4th of July, Vancouver's fireworks display is expected to be bigger and brighter.
Amy Mintonye, Director of Marketing & Communications at the Historic Trust, says the fireworks display at Fort Vancouver is known to be the largest one in the region, and this year it's going to be bigger.
The fireworks display will launch up to 500 feet high, cover a radius of 500 feet, and include unique special effects. The 20 minute show will feature 25% more fireworks and 50% more big shells than last year.
Mintonye says the show is designed on a computer program to synch with a custom playlist. Special effects will include component shells, tourbillions, hummers, flying dragons and crossettes.
The show starts at 10:05 p.m. Vehicle access will be restricted on July 4th and security gates will be in place. Mintonye recommends you to arrive in the late afternoon. If you take transit, you can take C-TRAN for free with shuttles running every 15 minutes between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. from the Fisher's Landing Transit Center and the 99th Street Transit Center, with return service after the show. There will be no shuttle service from Vancouver Mall this year.
Mintonye also recommends packing a picnic -- there are no food vendors at the event.
This is a free event, but if you wish to contribute, donations will be collected at the gates. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Lower Columbia Veterans Coalition, a collective made up of the Community Military Coalition (CMAC), Vancouver Barracks Military Association (VBMA), Combat Veterans International Chapter 9 (CVI), Buffalo Soldiers - Moses Williams Pacific Northwest Chapter, and Special Forces Association (SFA).