San Diego’s highly anticipated annual Independence Day tradition, which was set to celebrate its 20th anniversary this year, the Big Bay Boom has been cancelled due to precautions due to COVID-19 coronavirus.
The Port of San Diego announced today that the city's annual 4th of July fireworks spectacular has been cancelled. In alignment with the State of California’s stay-at-home order prohibiting large events and gatherings, and prioritizing public health, the Port of San Diego, title sponsor of the Big Bay Boom, and event producer Sandy Purdon jointly announced the 2020 fireworks show will not go on as planned this coming July 4, 2020. Coronado and Imperial Beach have also canceled their 2020 Fourth of July celebrations. This is the most newsworthy occurrence for the Big Bay Boom since the event made headlines in 2012 when all of the fireworks accidentally went off at once.
"Half a million people look forward to the Big Bay Boom each year, and it’s big business for our San Diego Bay waterfront tenants," said Port of San Diego CEO Randa Coniglio. "Ultimately, public health is most important, and we must follow state public health directives which say large public events are not allowed and aren’t likely to be allowed for some time. We look forward to the return of this celebratory and captivating event in 2021.”
Like many events this year, the Big Bay Boom is going virtual. The public is invited to tune in to a television special to air on Saturday, July 4 on FOX 5 San Diego and KTLA Los Angeles. While details are still to come, the special will feature Big Bay Boom fireworks from past years, along with special interviews and content.
"More than 125,000 households throughout Southern California and Baja watched the 2019 Big Bay Boom on television - making it the most watched locally produced special in the country," said Big Bay Boom Executive Producer Sandy Pardon. "This year, we’re focusing all our efforts on the TV special and plan to include even more content to celebrate our nation’s independence."
Most of San Diego's most popular summer events have already been cancelled, including the San Diego County Fair, San Diego Pride, Comic-Con International San Diego, and the OB Street Fair & Chili Cookoff. The Del Mar Racetrack has stated they will proceed with its summer 2020 season even without fans.
For more information about the San Diego Big Bay Boom, visit bigbayboom.com.
