Fourth of July:

Fourth fireworks light up valley sky

Tourists brave heat to see display of fireworks in Las Vegas

Justin M. Bowen

Thousands watched a Fourth of July fireworks display Saturday night at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip.

By Amanda Finnegan (contact), Cara McCoy (contact)

Published Saturday, July 4, 2009 | 2:46 p.m.

Updated Sunday, July 5, 2009 | 12:23 a.m.

Coverage of Fourth of July from across the valley

Fourth Without Fireworks

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Instead of celebrating the Fourth of July with fireworks, thousands of people spent the holiday watching simulated explosions on electronic screens at the Springs Preserve and The Fremont Street Experience.

Fourth of July on the Strip

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Fireworks displays outshone the neon and glitter of the Las Vegas Strip on Saturday to the delight of those enjoying the holiday weekend on Las Vegas Boulevard.

As the sun set for the night, tourists and locals crowded sidewalks, hoisted children on their shoulders and tilted their heads upward for a glimpse of the Fourth of July spectacle in the sky.

And, holiday or not, this Saturday night was like many on the Strip: busy and festive (but not necessarily patriotic). Many of the sidewalks were cramped with people and the foot traffic was shoulder-to-shoulder.

Dressed in their patriotic gear and blinking American flag pins, David and Louise Trudnak caught a prime spot on a pedestrian bridge to Caesars Palace to watch the fireworks. The Delaware couple has made celebrating Fourth of July in Las Vegas a tradition for 15 years.

“We worked for the school system so that always worked out but this year we were in Houston and San Francisco so we decided to circle around,” Louise Trudnak said.

The Trudnaks said that during the day they ate, gambled and tried to stay out of the heat, even though they said they aren’t bothered by triple-digit heat.

“We lived in Southern Maryland for a long time so we’re used to the Washington, D.C., humidity,” David Trudnak said. “The Vegas heat is nice because it’s dry and arid.”

For 5-year-old Braden Solter of St. Louis, Las Vegas is where he wanted to spend his vacation and Fourth of July holiday.

“He starts school this August so we wanted one more family trip. We asked him where he wanted to go and he said he wanted to go to Vegas since his grandparents always come here,” said his mom, Amy Solter.

“I wanted to come here because I wanted to play here and check it out. I’ve always wanted to live here,” the 5-year-old Solter said.

Justin M. Bowen

Thousands watched a Fourth of July fireworks display Saturday night at Caesars Palace on the Las Vegas Strip.

The family grabbed a seat on the steps near Serendipity 3 -- a perfect spot for the fireworks display just above Caesars’ Roman Tower.

Sarah Laucius of Philadelphia and Amy Kane of Los Angeles said they had to make a tough decision with their Fourth of July evening plans: Catch the MC Hammer/Vanilla Ice concert or see the fireworks. The fireworks won.

“You have compromises when you’re in a relationship,” Kane joked.

The pair said the fireworks didn’t disappoint.

But fireworks weren’t the only spectacle on the Strip. A large crowd gathered in front of the Miracle Mile Shops at Planet Hollywood to watch magician Steve Wyrick's "Death Drop" escape stunt. Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington, who is co-owner of Club Tattoo, hosted the event to coincide with the opening of the business.

As hundreds filled the sidewalks and streets in front of Planet Hollywood, Bennington, assisted by members of his side-project band Dead by Sunrise, shackled Wyrick and locked him inside one of the band’s equipment boxes.

Steve Wyrick stunt

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“Are you guys ready to see something amazing tonight?” Bennington asked the crowed, which roared in response.

Plans called for the box to be hoisted into the air, supported by a few thin ropes and dangled over a bed of 500 flaming spikes 80 feet below. The ropes would then be set on fire, forcing Wyrick to make his escape before the last rope broke.

But in reality, the stunt played out a little differently.

“This has never been done before, so anything can happen,” Wyrick said before climbing into the box.

After Wyrick was locked inside, the crewmembers went to light the ropes, igniting a black netting that was shielding the box from view. Much ado was made about the flaming veil, then emergency personnel responded as the box was whisked from view.

“Apparently something’s gone wrong,” Bennington said. “Steve’s had a bit of an accident.”

A helicopter then arrived, presumably responding to Wyrick’s medical emergency. As it landed on Las Vegas Boulevard between Planet Hollywood and CityCenter, Wyrick suddenly appeared from the helicopter, receiving applause from the crowd.

It wasn’t the 20-foot jump from the burning box over the bed of spikes the crowd had been promised. While some cheered, others were disappointed the stunt hadn’t gone “as planned.”

“It looked believable that he was hurt, but for him to all of a sudden arrive in a helicopter? I’m sorry. I’m disappointed,” said Charleton Lupica of Gulf Shores, Ala.

Laura Torrenzana arrived after the stunt was finished, disappointed she didn’t get to see it first-hand. She has been in Las Vegas for a week with 12 family members from New England.

“I think it feels more patriotic at home in New England, honestly. There’s so much of the Revolutionary War history, it’s just a bigger deal,” said Torrenzana’s step-daughter, Maren Gulbrandsen. “I feel like (Las Vegas) is a constant party whereas in Massachusetts, it’s our one time of year to really celebrate.”

A Vegas vacation isn’t the way the family members usually spend their Fourth of July. They usually “splurge a little” with a New England lobster dinner, watch fireworks and attend a local carnival.

As for the money she was spending, Torrenzana said the lower airfares and hotel prices helped make for a better vacation.

“But none of us have won at gambling,” Gulbrandsen said. “Maybe tonight’s the lucky night.”

Gulbrandsen wasn’t the only one who said the holiday rings a little hollow in Las Vegas. Will Hartman of Salt Lake City compared his holiday in Las Vegas to how he spent it last year – overseas.

“Last Fourth of July I actually spent in London, and it’s a nothing holiday for them -- completely off the radar. But I had at least two or three Brits come to me and say, ‘Happy Independence Day, mate,’ ” he said, impersonating an English accent.

Justin M. Bowen

Fourth of July crowds pack the pedestrian bridge outside the Bellagio on the Las Vegas Strip.

“I think the Founding Fathers would think of this,” he said, gesturing down Las Vegas Boulevard, “As the antithesis of what they had in mind (for Independence Day).”

For others, the day couldn’t have been more perfect.

Newly engaged Tim Willingham and Catherine Peck, of South Carolina, were delighted with their holiday together.

“I’ve never been to Vegas. He’d been to Vegas,” she said, motioning at her fiancé with the diamond on her finger glittering as the fireworks boomed over Caesars Palace. “I’ve heard all my life about it and so far, it’s outstanding. Overwhelming.”

It’s way better than Reno, she said. It’s even up there with Monte Carlo in Monaco, where she’d been on a previous vacation, she said.

“If you’ve ever been to Disney, with the fireworks and the pageantry, it’s true what they say – Las Vegas is an adult’s Disneyworld. That’s true,” Peck said.

Earlier in the day, while fireworks were on the minds of many, a more pressing matter was keeping cool in heat that hit the triple digits.

At the “Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas” sign, tourists lined up early in the day to have a photo snapped with the iconic landmark. Every parking spot in a newly built parking lot was taken.

After walking the Strip all morning, the Hillborn family from Ontario, Canada, made a final stop at the sign before heading back to their hotel pool to escape the heat.

Not only did the weekend mark their first trip to Las Vegas, it also was the family’s first Fourth of July in the United States.

“We’ve never been so we came to check out the casinos, all the attractions and the fireworks, and of course, this weather,” Mike Hillborn said.

While some might avoid the Vegas heat during the summer months, Hillborn said the family came with two children to experience heat they don’t feel at home.

“We don’t get anything like this up there,” Hillborn said of the Ontario weather.

Canadians celebrated their independence with Canada Day on Wednesday but Hillborn said the day is much more subdued compared to what they’ve heard of America’s Independence Day celebrations.

“I’m sure it’s going to be way bigger than Canada Day,” Hillborn said. “You guys (Americans) are very patriotic, that’s for sure.”

For the Wiesner family from Ashland, Mo., Las Vegas was a pit stop on a cross-country road trip. They had driven from Missouri to California earlier in the week for a wedding and rolled into town for the holiday weekend.

The family, staying at Circus Circus, planned to watch some fireworks – then hit the road and return to the Midwest. How was the family keeping cool?

“It’s not that big a difference from Missouri, so I’m used to it,” Rick Wiesner said. “They’re not,” he said, pointing to his two children and his sister-in-law, “but I am.”

Generally on the Fourth the family spends about $500 on fireworks to set off at home – “big mortars,” Rick Weisner said – so they were looking forward to what Las Vegas had to offer.

Patricia and Jorge Ruiz, of Fullerton, Calif., were spending their first Fourth of July in Las Vegas with their children, Jorge III, 6, and Brianna, 4. In previous years they’d gone to Laughlin, but opted for Mandalay Bay this year.

The family wore matching red shirts with an American flag splashed across the chest.

“It’s not hard to stay cool with the air conditioning and the pools,” Jorge Ruiz said. “And there’s plenty of time at night to gamble.”

Discussion: 12 comments so far…

By Babyboomer

7/4/09 at 4:35 p.m.

Suggest removal

Happy 4th !!!
By lisa80268

7/4/09 at 4:44 p.m.

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yawn....
By vsestini

7/5/09 at 8:54 a.m.

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I watched the 4th of July celebration from our nation's capitol on TV. What a show! A spectabular fireworks display that went on and on continuously for about 45 minutes; and, it was free for those who attended the affair.

By contrast Las Vegas, a very rich city with fabulous resort establishments costing billions of dollars in some cases, offers something equivalent to a cheap peep show. Each puts on a short fireworks display for a few minutes to attract patrons and to charge them large prices for watered-down booze and in the hopes that they will drop money on the gaming tables. The hoopla about how great each fireworks will be is shallow it is embrassing.

Las Vegas used to be a city of class. It is now a cheap, sleezy city with little appeal to those who remember the 'good ole days' when people were treated like they were wanted on their properties.

Like the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, small cities, some with less than 10,000 people send their school bands to participate. Las Vegas only some 400 miles away cannot seem to put together enough money from the local resorts to offer a float in'the parade of parades' or to send one of our top high school bands to represent out city each year.

Cheap and sleezy has become the logo and philosophy for this once fabulous city...! They want the customers the cheap way, without the few coins that would be required from each resort to advertise our city; with a united effort of all resorts in this valley the worldwide attraction of the annual Rose Parade the publicity value and return would be beyond imagination for any initial, individual resort contribution.

Yes, we are all experiencing the economic downturn, but other cities and podunk towns from 'hicksville' will and do out class Las Vegas. We have lost so much since the mega-business MBA boys started running this place that it is embarassing to native Las Vegans like me.
By davidwayneosedach

7/5/09 at 9:42 a.m.

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Who in Las Vegas would want to miss the Fourth of July fireworks?
By Symion

7/5/09 at 12:51 p.m.

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Amazing from show to road and stunning fireworks.
Cheers, 4th July the true word of serious man.
By miketeoh

7/5/09 at 2:08 p.m.

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To vsestini,

You spent a lot of your July4 writing a lengthy essay of negativity. I was impressed by the fireworks last night, may not be as glamorous. We are still in difficult times and should be grateful that tourists are coming to celebrate with us this joyous day. Now you are trying to drive them away with your doom and gloom.
I suggest LV Sun to remove your post.
By VegasVegas

7/5/09 at 8:50 p.m.

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Vestini, you have great points. To suggest removing his post is childish. Just because YOU don't like what he has to say doesn't warrant a removal. Coming from a world-class city and moving to Vegas, I see everything he speaks of to be quite accurate.

Vegas is always trying to live up to 'big brother' but never quite puts forth the effort to do it. We want to be a world-class city, we want to feel like OUR celebrations are the focus of the country (with stupid titles such as "America's Party" for New Years Eve where year after year, you just end up watching horrible reporters ask drunk people on the strip why they came to Vegas to "party".)

The city took away one of the biggest July 4th celebrations at Desert Breeze several years ago, and replaced it with what? Funding the "virtual fireworks" on Fremont street? Once again, the city leadership basically says "screw the families out there who live here, let's focus our energies on the tourists". Southern Nevada needs a MAJOR overhaul before things will ever even come close to going in the right direction here.

In the meantime, people like myself will voice their displeasure, other people who have their bar set much lower will argue that there's nothing wrong, and the cycle will continue year after year.
By NVCitizen

7/6/09 at 6:37 a.m.

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Well, 4th of July 2009 has come and gone, yet the remnants of the celebrations remain on our streets, sidewalks and parks. Apparently our neighbors, who purchased their own fireworks, did not see clear to cleaning up after themselves, and the spent casings of the fireworks remain as trash and reminders in our streets. Thank you to all my neighbors for making my neighborhood look like a litter-strewn battle zone!
By uddeboda

7/6/09 at 7:45 a.m.

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Just to put a damp quib amongst the happy comments. Nearly all the legal fireworks used in the USA come from Chinese factories, some illegal ones come from Mexico.
Think about it next time, these Chinese factories have some of the worst working conditions of any Chinese factories, where thousands of hugely underpaid workers die or are maimed for life. Also remember, next time, Chinese fireworks contain chemicals that are forbidden by law, yet they still use them, otherwise, how would you get such bright coloured effects.
By rumrunner

7/6/09 at 12:09 p.m.

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I for one will have to agree vegas needs more than a major overhaul,it needs new blood.To advertise as the city to come to for the fourth,and only one strip property can shoot off fireworks was another slap to the cities face!They may have offered great deals to get them here,but all weekend long all you could hear is how badly they felt ripped off once they got here!Until these retards that are running this city into the ground wake up,the people that keep the guests happy will take it up the tail pipe!How can you talk highly about your city when you allways have to wonder if you ll have your job from one min to the next,and its your employers fault that the guests are unhappy!THIS PLACE TRUELY HAS BECOME "LOST WAGES"!
By Patrick_R_Gibbons

7/6/09 at 4:57 p.m.

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So udde is your solution to put those workers out on the street, or what? Or is it to outlaw fireworks?...which also puts those workers out on the street (at least for now).
By uddeboda

7/7/09 at 8:58 a.m.

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Its not about putting workers out of a job, its just better working conditions better pay, but then the people like yourself, wouldnt like that, it would make fireworks much much more expensive