Wichita has not had a fireworks display for an Independence Day celebration since 2010, as the Wichita Eagle recently reported, but luckily there are locations in and around the city that will be hosting festivities that include some pyrotechnics:
- Bradley Fair: Enjoy a free concert with jazz musician Joseph Vincelli that will be followed by a fireworks display. The music starts at 7:30 p.m. and the fireworks will light up the sky around 9:30 p.m.
- Garden Plain: The city will be hosting an all day family friendly event that will include a dodgeball tournament, a petting zoo, turtle races and more. The day's festivities will also include a parade and will be capped off by a fireworks display at dusk.
- Derby: Along with a parade and bounce houses, this celebration will also include a firecracker run that starts at 7:30 a.m. Food trucks and live entertainment will be on site before the fireworks go off around 9:40 p.m.
- Goddard: A community softball game along with a performance by a banjo band are the highlights of this celebration that will also include ice cream, hot dogs and watermelons for those who come early. Along with these festivities, you can go for a swim at the Goddard City Pool after the fireworks display goes off at dusk.
- McPherson: You can start off your day at the First Mennonite Church with an offering of hot dogs, hamburgers, homemade pie and popcorn. As soon as it gets dark, you can head over to Wall Bicentennial Park for ice cream and a fireworks show.
- Park City: A parade kicks off the a day of celebration that is followed by ice cream social, a car show, senior bingo, a karaoke contest and a concert by country artist James Wesley. The night also ends with fireworks in the park.
- Haysville: A coed sand volleyball tournament kicks off the day along with a parade and a kids' fishing derby. There are also frog and raft races, a water carnival and a concert by the Jake Gill Band. Fireworks are expected to go off in the park around 9:45 p.m.
- Augusta: The annual children’s parade start at 10:00 a.m. in downtown Augusta. Bikes, scooters and wagons are all acceptable modes of transportation for the march down Seventh and State streets. The fireworks show will begin at dusk and take place around the Augusta City Lake.
- El Dorado: A wiffle ball tournament will take place at 9:00 a.m. Turtle and sack races, face painting, a water balloon toss and more will take place afterward. The municipal pool will be open all day and is offering a free swim for all those who come. A baseball game will also be free at McDonald Stadium at 7:00 p.m. End the night at El Dorado Lake with a firework show at 9 p.m.
- Rose Hill: An ice cream social starts at 8 p.m. and is followed by a firework show at Shorty Cox Park.
If you plan on staying at home and creating your own dazzling display, officials in Sedgwick County want residents to be especially careful this week because of debris still awaiting pickup from a recent bout of violent weather.
Storms that hit the Wichita area on Thursday with winds topping 70 mph damaged or destroyed thousands of trees. Many residents have built piles of debris in their yards or curbsides, where the leaves and branches are drying out.
The Sedgwick County Fire Department says areas where fireworks are being ignited or may land during this Independence Day week should be cleared of leaves, dry grass and tree limbs.
