The man behind Dubbo’s fireworks show has promised new and exciting things for the 2018 display.
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Steve Lee from Inland Fireworks in Parkes said the fireworks in Dubbo were some of the best in the region.
But this New Year’s Eve he plans to make it even “bigger and better” than before.
Mr Lee said he was looking to add a musical soundtrack to the show. While there was usually music playing as the fireworks went off, this time Mr Lee said he wanted the two to be synced.
“We started planning this year’s show at the end of the last show. I’ve already been speaking to Peter [Judd, chairman of the Dubbo Firework’s Committee] since New Year’s Eve,” he said.
As well as wanting to improve on the show every year, Mr Lee said he had an extra reason to make 2018 a standout show.
Despite having done all the tests, preparations and having used it in about 10 other shows, the pyrotechnic expert said the promised fireball didn’t go off.
“We’re up in the VIP area and we didn’t realise we were counting down from 10 and the radio was counting down from 30. We fired a rocket from the VIP area which we expected to ignite the fireball but it didn’t work,” Mr Lee said.
“I felt so sorry for Peter but there was no way to fix it. I’ve got to make it up to him this year.”
The failed firebomb didn’t affect anyone’s safety, Mr Lee said, and once it failed to start it couldn’t be fixed.
His family fireworks business started in Broken Hill in 1997, but when it started to grow, Mr Lee moved to Parkes to be closer to the local shows.
“We probably average about one [display] a week, about 50 a year. But during show season we could do ten in one week,” he said.
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The Dubbo display was generally built around a theme or idea.
“It comes down a little bit to the budget. Sometimes it’s up, sometimes it’s down, it depends on the fundraising,” Mr Lee said.
“You don’t want the same show every year but there are certain parts that really work.New products always come out during the year and I try different brands. Sometimes it goes off spectacularly, sometimes I think ‘I won’t be using that again’.”
The space for the Dubbo fireworks show was a little limited, Mr Lee said, restricting use of some fireworks. However, he said this year there were plans to push the crowd back further and give more room to the display.
Thousands of people, including both Dubbo locals and visitors to the city, attended the 2017 New Year’s Eve celebration and fireworks display at Apex Oval.
Mr Judd said there was an “absolute buzz” at Sunday night’s event.