Fireworks lit up the downtown sky Tuesday night on July 4th at the 8th annual Red, White, and Boom! event hosted by the Wichita Park & Recreation department.
City officials closed off Mclean Blvd. from Maple to Douglas, and the Lewis Street bridge as well. There were food trucks on the scene, and people watched the fireworks from the Hyatt Lawn and Riverfront Stadium.
Fireworks crews began setting up the display at 8:00 a.m. Tuesday, culminating in the 20-minute show Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, the lawful shooting off of fireworks in Wichita came to an end at midnight Wednesday. This year, the City of Wichita changed its ordinance to better align with Kansas law. Aerial fireworks were allowed to be shot from July 1 through July 4. Fireworks not exceeding 15 feet from the ground were allowed to be shot from June 27 to July 4.
Outside of the legal dates and times, citations will be issued. Shooting fireworks on July 5 and afterwards is no longer permitted.
Independence Day was also marked with a ceremony at Veterans Memorial Park downtown by the Arkansas River; it took place at the American Revolutionary War Memorial.
The ceremony recognized the soldiers who fought for the nation’s independence. It featured a speaker, color guard, rifle salute, a bugler playing the national anthem, as well as "Taps".