Seattle's Space Needle NYE fireworks cancelled just minutes before midnight

Jan 1 2020, 8:36 am

Vancouverites who made a road trip to Seattle to ring in the new decade with fireworks could not escape disappointment.

Approximately 10 minutes before midnight, organizers of the New Year’s Eve fireworks at the Space Needle announced they were forced to cancel the tradition of launching fireworks off the tower due to high winds that made it dangerous to proceed with the show.

The heavy rainfall and high winds began to subside late into the evening, but the winds did not fall below the threshold of 25 miles per hour (40 km per hour) and gusts of 30 miles per hour (48 km per hour) before the final deadline on the decision on whether to proceed.

Instead, a musically-choreographed light show replaced the fireworks spectacular.

Pyrotechnicians made another attempt to launch the fireworks at 2 am, but the winds still had not lowered to safe levels.

Meanwhile in Metro Vancouver on Tuesday afternoon, the same weather system that brought continued heavy rainfall and high winds forced the operators of Cypress, Grouse, and Seymour mountains to cancel their early family-friendly fireworks shows between 8 pm and 9 pm. No midnight fireworks were planned.

The usual fireworks at Coal Harbour in downtown Vancouver did not go ahead either, as organizers of Concord’s New Year’s Eve Vancouver have taken a one-year hiatus in preparation of a relocation of the event to East False Creek — between Science World and Cambie Bridge — starting on December 31, 2020.

The 8 pm and midnight fireworks at Whistler Village’s Skiers Plaza went ahead as scheduled.

DH Vancouver StaffDH Vancouver Staff

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