Glenwood Springs Approves Laser Lights Instead Of Fireworks For 4th
GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) - Anticipating extreme fire risks this summer, one Colorado mountain town has decided to scrap the traditional 4th of July city fireworks show altogether and replace it with a laser light display.
The proposal will be discussed during Thursday night's board meeting in Glenwood Springs.
The plan calls for a laser light show shot on the side of Red Mountain with music matching the beams of light.
The option costs less than the traditional display.
The local fire chief has asked the city to not host a fireworks show because of dry conditions and no relief in sight. The area has been prone to wildfires, including the Coal Seam Fire in 2002 that burned for weeks and forced many in the city to evacuate.
"It's hot, dry, it's hard to tell what the summer is going to be," said Glenwood Springs resident Marcy Olive. "I think it would be really cool, something different for Glenwood. Sometimes they don't have fireworks at all because of the weather so the laser show would be really cool just to substitute that."
Other towns like Aspen have already canceled their shows and some communities have said they will scale down the fireworks because of the danger.
Wildfire Resources
- Visit CBSDenver.com's Living With Wildfire section.
Wildfire Photo Galleries
- See images from the most destructive wildfires (Black Forest, Waldo Canyon, High Park and Fourmile), the deadliest (Storm King) and largest wildfire (Hayman) in Colorado history.
Matt Kroschel covers news throughout Colorado working from the CBS4 Mountain Newsroom. Send story ideas to mrkroschel@cbs.com and connect with him on Twitter @Matt_Kroschel.
