Disappointing Fourth of July fireworks show in Lake Worth Beach sparks talk of drone display for 2026
- 7 hours ago
- 3 min read
FOR THE SECOND time in four years, technical issues by the same company led to a disappointing Fourth of July fireworks show in Lake Worth Beach.
City commissioners, reacting to the most recent dud, indicated support July 15 for two options: Finding a new fireworks vendor or replacing fireworks with a drone display.
“This is the second time we have been through this with this company and they are representing the city,’’ said Vice Mayor Sarah Malega.
On July 4, the fireworks off Bryant Park started nearly 30 minutes late and included long gaps between sets, sparking bursts of social media comments from unhappy watchers.
“We did hear comments from residents and we completely understand there was some disappointment with our fireworks,’’ Teanna McKay, the city's Leisure Services director told commissioners July 15.
“The company experienced technical difficulties,’’ she said.
The company, Vero Beach-based Explosive Touch Enterprises, blamed “technical difficulties” in 2022 when that Lake Worth Beach Fourth of July fireworks display ended shortly after it started.
At the time, Explosive Touch Enterprises was in the final year of a five-year contract that paid the company $20,000 a year. The city then issued a request for proposals for a new fireworks company but got no responses. The city wound up hiring Explosive Touch Enterprises again, agreeing to a contract that ends in 2026.
McKay said the city had budgeted $30,000 for the 2025 display but will end up paying $14,750 because of the technical issues. To make up for the glitch, she said, the company has offered to put on another fireworks show in October at the Little Screams Halloween event, the same concession the company made after the 2022 Fourth of July dud.
“We wanted to publicly apologize to our residents. It wasn't us,’’ McKay said. “Staff doesn't want to disappoint residents again.’’
Malega said she would support the canceling the contract and finding a new vendor. She also suggested looking into a drone show if it could be done without harming oystercatchers, a protected shorebird.
“I’d like to see a cost assessment of drones versus fireworks,’’ she said. “Fireworks, you can have major technical issues, drones you can as well but they’re also a lot safer.’’
A majority of other commissioners agreed with her suggestions.
“I always hear of people, pets, dogs that are freaked out (by the fireworks noise),’’ said Commissioner Chris McVoy. “Let's at least bring back to the commission the possibility.’’
In early 2023, Mayor Betty Resch brought up a lighted drone display as a possible replacement for fireworks but the idea never went anywhere because of costs, among other things.
“For the money, a drone show, it has got to be impressive,’’ Resch said July 15, noting that “it will be interesting to see” the cost comparisons.
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Joe Capozzi is an award-winning reporter based in Lake Worth Beach. He spent more than 30 years writing for newspapers, mostly at The Palm Beach Post, where he wrote about the opioid scourge, invasive pythons, the birth of the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches and Palm Beach County government. For 15 years, he covered the Miami Marlins baseball team. Joe left The Post in December 2020. View all posts by Joe Capozzi.