SAN DIEGO (KGTV)- A different kind of light show will be lighting up Ocean Beach. For the first time, a drone show will be displayed during the July 4th celebration.
“A lot of the communities along the coast, because of environmental reasons, Inland because of fire hazards, are moving away from fireworks and moving into drones,” says Mike James, Founder of the Ocean Beach Drone Show.
James says the fireworks are typically launched off the Ocean Beach Pier, but after years of being temporarily shut down, that wasn’t possible this time around. The city reopened the pier over the weekend after being closed for six months.
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“Basically, the pier is falling apart. It structurally cannot handle the trucks (and) the sand that is required to do the fireworks," James said. "So we had to re-imagine our Fourth of July celebration.”
The Ocean Beach Drone Show will launch over 300 drones. Each formation will display designs that represent Ocean Beach. The show will last approximately 12 minutes.
Some locals tell ABC 10News they are still unsure about having drones instead of fireworks.
“I don’t know if I would love it, but it’s better than nothing,” says Allie Kirkpatrick.
“The drone show is a novel approach,” says Peter Stiehle. “I don’t think it’s going to be as exciting as real fireworks with the intense booming and explosions.”
James says it’s unclear if the fireworks will ever return to their beloved beach community. He says he has a soft spot for them and was responsible for bringing the display to Ocean Beach 40 years ago.
“For me to see this rendition end. It made me sad,” James said. “I wanted to find something different, so that's why I created Luminosity to look at alternatives to reimagine our Fourth of July celebration here in Ocean Beach.”
The best spot to watch the Fourth of July celebration is near Newport Avenue. There will be a soundtrack available to listen to while enjoying the show.
There will be a social media contest for the best photos of the Ocean Beach Drone Show. Participants must post their pictures to their social media using “#LiteUpOB.”
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