Have you ever wondered how they make fireworks so colorful or what it takes to put on a large-scale Fourth of July production?
Here’s your chance to find out.
Deb Fohringer, a pyrotechnics volunteer for 4thFest, will preside over “Fantastic Fireworks, a fireworks demonstration for children at Schlow Library on Thursday.
The demonstration will focus on how volunteers blast the fireworks into the air, and the kinds of preparations that go into a large-scale pyrotechnics show.
“Well naturally we’re not allowed to use live fireworks,” Fohringer says. “I kind of explain how we set everything up on the field. I have a fake shell that is cut in half and it shows them all the layers that are inside a shell.”
The fuses are all electronic, so with just a press of a button from a nearby computer, the show begins.
Fohringer will explain how everything works including the hi-tech computerized firing system, fuses, mortars and more. She’ll also discuss how different chemicals are used to produce a variety of colors, and how shells are fired out of a mortar.
The event will also include fireworks safety tips for parents at home.
This is the second year that Schlow is holding its Fantastic Fireworks event, but this this year it’s going to be a lot more in-depth.
“We try to vary our programming, but when [Fohringer] did this last year she had expected the level of questions to be a lot lower than it was,” says Anita Ditz, head of the children’s services at Schlow Library.
Last year, Fohringer was surprised how much the younger attendees already knew about chemistry, and how easily they were able to pronounce the chemical names.
“The average six-year-old now is a whole lot different than when I was a six-year-old,” Fohringer says. “So this year they’re getting the regular demo that I’m doing over on the field.”
Fohringer says she wants to inspire the young crowd to become interested in fireworks.
“Since [4thFest] is all volunteer, eventually we’re going to need more volunteers. None of us are getting younger,” she jokes.
Fantastic Fireworks is being held in the Downsbrough Community Room at Schlow Libary, which is located on 211 S Allen St. It starts at 2:30 p.m. and no registration is required.
Fohringer will also conduct a similar information session during 4thFest, before the fireworks show starts. Pyrotechnic demonstrations will happen near the west side of Beaver Stadium on July 4, between 4 and 7 p.m. The 4thFest fireworks show starts at 9:15 p.m. on Saturday.
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