John Morris was eager to mark the 250th anniversary of America with his annual fireworks show at Alamitos Beach.<\/p>\n
Then, he discovered the California Coastal Commission would only approve a show using lighted drones, not real fireworks. He couldn\u2019t believe it. <\/p>\n
\u201cOf course it\u2019s going to be about fireworks,\u201d Morris told the commission at a hearing last year. \u201cSo we\u2019re going to be the only ones in the country who can\u2019t do fireworks? Gotta be kidding me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morris tried to appeal the decision this year, but the board upheld its call. So, after 14 years, he canceled the Big Bang on the Bay celebration.<\/p>\n
The event, which has drawn 1,300 people to Alamitos Bay and more than 100,000 to nearby beaches for a 20-minute extravaganza, is the latest fireworks show to go dark, but it likely won\u2019t be the last.<\/p>\n
Big fireworks shows are on the decline in California amid a variety of factors including increased regulations, litigation by environmental groups and public concern about pollution and wildfires.<\/p>\n
The transition is underway at plenty of Californians\u2019 favorite spots.<\/p>\n
In the last few years, Fourth of July shows at the Rose Bowl, Grand Park in downtown, Hansen Dam in the San Gabriel Valley, Morro Bay on the Central Coast and at Lake Cunningham in San Jos\u00e9 have all moved from fireworks to drones. Next year, the Port of San Diego\u2019s Big Bay Boom show could also become a drone show at the behest of the Coastal Commission. <\/p>\n
\u201cEvery show is analyzed on a case-by-case basis, but there has been direction from the commission to see a transition to drones,\u201d said Jeff Palm, an analyst with the California Coastal Commission. <\/p>\n
The commission, tasked with protecting waters, marine life, environment and access to the state\u2019s coast, has used its jurisdiction to steer groups toward drones, which are seen as being more environmentally friendly than fireworks. Some organizers have adopted the change on their own, looking to entertain spectators with a new technology that offers a different kind of show.<\/p>\n
Some argue the switch to drones makes perfect sense, allowing big entertainment value without the environmental and public safety trade-offs.<\/p>\n
But to traditionalists like Morris, it\u2019s just not the same without the real explosions.<\/p>\n
Like so many things in California, the fireworks debate has entered the culture wars this summer, with right-wing influencers slamming the anti-fireworks crowd, specifically targeting the Coastal Commission\u2019s executive director, Kate Huckelbridge, for scorn.<\/p>\n
Fireworks are a hot political issue in Southern California, in part due to the proliferation of illegal fireworks set off around the region on and around July 4. Those pyrotechnics have led to fires and serious casualties. To some, it makes regulated, organized fireworks show all the more important as an alternative.<\/p>\n
In April, Congressman Ken Calvert (R-Corona) introduced a bill to temporarily waive regulations at the state and federal levels that limit fireworks for the nation\u2019s upcoming 250th birthday. It remains in committee.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmericans celebrate Independence Day by eating hot dogs, apple pie and watching fireworks \u2014 and I\u2019m not going to let left-wing lunatics stop that,\u201d Calvert said in announcing the bill.<\/p>\n
He later told The Times in an interview, \u201cThese communities want to have a fireworks display, a traditional firework show. C\u2019mon, this is crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Huckelbridge, who has led the commission for three years, said the board stands by its Long Beach decision and wasn\u2019t surprised the community was unhappy, recognizing the event doubles as a fundraiser for local programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate it\u2019s become a political issue,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
So, on May 1, the Coastal Commission sent Morris a letter presenting a couple of alternatives for his show: Go with drones, as they\u2019d previously suggested, or launch fireworks from \u201can adjacent location along the Long Beach shoreline that is still visible from the event location.\u201d<\/p>\n
Morris dismissed the offer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI never responded to it; they\u2019re just covering their ass,\u201d Morris said. \u201cThey just want to push their agenda of drone shows.\u201d<\/p>\n
The same day Morris\u2019 show was officially kaput, the city of Long Beach applied to put on its own, in tandem with the Queen Mary\u2019s fireworks display in the port. The city-owned Queen Mary is not under the jurisdiction of the Coastal Commission due to its location, but the city\u2019s fireworks expansion outside the port is. The permit, approved by the commission, was for this year only.<\/p>\n
Businesses looking to capitalize on the holiday celebrations are learning to play both sides of the fence between drones and fireworks.<\/p>\n
Stephen Vitale, chief executive of Pyrotecnico, a Pennsylvania-based company that bills itself as the country\u2019s largest provider of fireworks shows, has seen the growing popularity of drone shows across the country and, four years ago, added drones to its arsenal. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s great, it tells a story, it creates its own \u2018oohs\u2019 and \u2018aahs\u2019 with spectators and people love them,\u201d Vitale said. \u201cOur existing clients started asking if we did it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Vitale doesn\u2019t see fireworks and drones as competing media, or one replacing the other any time soon. Across the U.S., the demand for both is thriving, he said, although he does see some pockets of the country increasingly looking at drones because of environmental issues or fire risks. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not really a drone versus firework situation for us,\u201d he said. \u201cFireworks hit all five senses, and drones sort of do as well. Our clients in fireworks wanted drones as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Last year, Vitale said, Pyrotecnico set up 80 drone shows across the country, and this year, they\u2019re looking to double that number. <\/p>\n
Drone shows, which take longer to plan out, are still costlier for the customer than a fireworks show similar in time and scope, he said, but he expects that the price differences may even out in the coming years as technology improves.<\/p>\n
Drones can tell a better story, he said, but the demand for fireworks is still out there, fueled by nostalgia.<\/p>\n
It can lead to cities vacillating between honoring old traditions and starting new ones, as exemplified by three SoCal beach cities.<\/p>\n
In 2024, Laguna Beach and Redondo Beach both went to drone shows before returning to fireworks in 2025. In Goleta, however, the transition to drones last year stuck, with another show approved for the upcoming Fourth.<\/p>\n
The connection between fireworks, which were invented in China, and American independence goes back to the country\u2019s earliest days. Many point to a letter John Adams sent his wife<\/a> in 1776, in which he told her that the country\u2019s independence from then on should be celebrated with \u201cPomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations.\u201d <\/p>\n