For the fourth consecutive year, there will be no big fireworks show in Haines.
On the Fourth of July between 6 p.m. and midnight, consumer-grade fireworks will be allowed in areas along the Portage Cove waterfront similar to areas permitted for the activity last year.
Haines Borough police and fire departments released a statement last week that fireworks will be allowed on the “beach areas of Picture Point and Port Chilkoot Dock,” excluding “harbor areas from Oceanside RV Park to the Front Street Pavilion and within 100 feet of private residences.”
Police Chief Heath Scott said the plan is a “little bit expanded,” but largely similar to last year’s designated areas. “We’re excluding the area that could negatively impact the boat harbor,” he said.
Last year’s permitted areas were restricted to beach areas directly below the Picture Point pullouts and about half the beach from Port Chilkoot Dock to the harbor, as designated on a map created by tourism director Leslie Ross.
The big, annual show – detonated over the water at Picture Point and watched by crowds at Fort Seward – was canceled in 2014 when pyrotechnician Phillip Wilde quit, citing “drama, politics and stress.” Wilde returned in 2015 to put on a show with consumer-grade fireworks.
The Haines Borough canceled last year’s show when officials learned that Wilde’s pyrotechnician license expired.
It’s unlawful for anyone but a licensed pyrotechnician holding a contract with the borough to discharge fireworks near the borough’s port facilities. Acquiring a license involves passing a written exam administered by the state Department of Public Safety.
Wilde again is putting on a “private” fireworks show at 33 Mile Haines Highway, using consumer-grade fireworks.