![]() “Most of the feedback I got was that it was pretty cool,” Brand said in a phone interview on Wednesday. But the drone show still got pretty good reviews.īrand watched the drone show from Seaside Lagoon, his usual viewing spot for Fourth of July fireworks displays. Indeed, traditional fireworks were missed in Redondo Beach this year. “We don’t want to replace fireworks,” Pivnick said. All told, he said, there are at least 1,000 fireworks shows in the state. His Texas company, for example, produces about seven drone shows in California. The cities on the Palos Verdes Peninsula don’t have fireworks shows because the hill is considered at high risk for wildfires because of its vast open spaces and vegetation.īut, Pivnick said, even though the technology is an emerging market, featuring at many events other than Fourth of July, drones will not totally replace traditional fireworks. Rancho Palos Verdes, for example, held its first Fourth of July drone show this week. And that works great, Pivnick added, as drones are prohibited from flying over people and “people don’t walk on water.”ĭrone shows work well for communities that can’t have traditional fireworks for multiple reasons, Pivnick said, such as those in wildfire-prone areas. About 40-50% of the drone programs that company creates, in fact, are for over-the-water shows, he said. “For those of us on the coast,” Brand said about the future of shows over the water, “this may be the new normal.”ĭrones, though, are becoming an increasingly prevalent option for Fourth of July coastal celebrations, said Kyle Pivnick, business development manager with Sky Elements. It’s too early to tell, Brand said, whether Morris will have to pay an exorbitant fine after this year’s pyrotechnics, let alone whether new lawsuits could arrive. ![]() Those regulations, opponents said, came too quickly and were too burdensome, though water board officials have defended the rules. (The environmental group has appealed the lawsuit.) The operator, John Morris, prevailed in that lawsuit - but in response, the LA Regional Water Board enact last-minute regulations this year. In Long Beach, the organizer of the popular Big Bang on the Bay fireworks show faced a lawsuit from environmentalists who argued the annual display polluted Alamitos Bay. Still, the mayor said, the beach cities will watch their neighbors, including Long Beach, for how government enforcement of the new regulations - not to mention possible new lawsuits - unfold in the wake of this year’s shows. There are bigger environmental impacts to the Santa Monica Bay, than a 20-minute fireworks show shot off over the ocean, Brand said - such as sewage spills and other dumping that happens. The drone show lasted about nine minutes, compared to around 20 for the traditional fireworks. Still, Redondo officials said they were pleased with the results of drone technology, and residents, in general, thought the show was cool, though too short. Tuesday’s crowd numbered about 5,000, said interim Fire Chief Patrick Butler, which is lower than in prior years. ![]() Namely, the show wasn’t seen by nearly as many people as the tried-and-true fireworks. The beach city’s first drone show was a success by many measures - but not all. The short turnaround was possible because of drone show company Sky Elements, which provided a pre-programmed patriotic package that was ready to go - except for some bespoke additions to reflect the Redondo community - for a discounted $65,000. It was a different sort of scene for the beach community, which had to forsake its 40–year fireworks tradition this year because of last-minute changes to water board regulations. The explosive boom and sparkle of traditional Fourth of July fireworks over the water in Redondo Beach gave way this week to a low buzz and precisely drawn, automated lines of red, white and blue.Ī giant star-spangled flag, 3-D stars, the gleaming letters “USA” and an American eagle hovered over King Harbor on Tuesday thanks to 200 synchronized drones.
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