July 4th fireworks: Behind the scenes

People all over the Coachella Valley are spending the day celebrating our nation’s 237th birthday. There are festivals, parades and BBQ’s all over tonight, not to mention fireworks.

One spot to celebrate on this 4th of July is the La Quinta Community Park. From 4:30pm to 10:00pm there is live music, a beer garden, a chili cook-off and a Kid Zone. The parade is at 7pm down Main Street in Old Town La Quinta. Fireworks are set to start at 9:15pm

Gail Mceachern, a La Quinta resident, says, “It’s really exciting when it’s Fourth of July and it’s hotter than the fourth, to be able to enjoy the activities that we have in our city.”

Originally from Boston, this is one holiday that Gail and Gary Mceachern aren’t missing.

“We feel because we came from one of the 13 original Colonies that this is a very special day for us, so we thoroughly enjoy it,” said Gary Mceachern.

This is Denise Callister’s first Fourth of July. She just moved to the desert from Italy a few months ago.

“We are just having fun. I am really excited, I just want to spent the most American day in my life,” said Callister.

But the one thing everyone is waiting for is fireworks. John Terlisner is the pryotechnician for La Quinta’s show.

“We have an incredible finally, we have several hundred shells,” said Terlisner.

It takes 80 man-hours to create the nearly 20 minute show.

“We basically have 6 stations and it is all planned out,” said Terlisner.

They started setting up yesterday at the La Quinta Resort. Each tube houses a firework that will be launched over 500 feet into the air.

“We have some that are quite high, and this is not only a great place to see a show, it is a great place to hear a show because the sound will reverberate through the canyon here,” said Terlisner.

It’s all perfectly timed to patriotic music.

“Each of these is figured to the 30th of a second of when it goes off,” said Terlisner.

When they go off Terlisner will be a hundred feet away pushing the button.

“Things are going relatively well, we are on the final stages of dropping shells.”