Wondering where to see fireworks this Fourth of July weekend? It's a pretty short list, as displays all across Long Island have been canceled to keep crowds from gathering during the pandemic.
East Hampton Town and Village have not issued any permits for fireworks this year: no Devon Yacht Club display, no Stars Over Montauk, no Great Bonac Fireworks over Three Mile Harbor later in July, and no Main Beach fireworks in August. There will be no fireworks in Sag Harbor, and none at the North Sea Fire Department Carnival (no carnival either), and none on Shelter Island.
But the Southampton Fresh Air Home has decided that the show must go on, and its Fireworks by Grucci display will light up the skies over Shinnecock Bay on Sunday night at 9:15 (rescheduled from Friday due to a forecast of rain), even though the American Picnic fund-raiser that usually accompanies it has been canceled. The picnic and pyrotechnics, a 32-year tradition, raise over 25 percent of the annual operating revenue for the Southampton Fresh Air Home, a residential summer camp for young people with physical disabilities.
"Although our ability to celebrate together at the picnic has been canceled due to the Covid 19 pandemic, we hope you will still choose to support the fireworks in order to sustain our programs and provide continued patriotism for our American celebration," the organization wrote on its website. Donations can be made online at sfah.org.
"While our services are reduced temporarily, we continue to serve as many campers as possible based on the day-to-day changing guidelines and regulations. We are currently offering virtual programs to our physically disabled children and young adults which provide for a great distraction and socialization for many," the message on the website said.
The fireworks will be choreographed to a soundtrack simulcast live on 104.7 FM.
In East Hampton, not only is the Great Bonac Fireworks Show canceled, but the Clamshell Foundation, which sponsors it, has also canceled its popular sand castle contest later this summer at Atlantic Avenue Beach in Amagansett.
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Update: The Southampton Fresh Air Home postponed its fireworks display from Thursday evening to Sunday evening.