CarmelFest fireworks return to single location for city’s largest display ever
The City of Carmel’s annual fireworks display on July 4 is moving back to CarmelFest with the city’s biggest and longest fireworks show ever – nearly 30 minutes of lighting up the skies over downtown Carmel.
After three years of separating fireworks shows into three different locations due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, event organizers decided to bring everyone back together for the traditional fireworks display at the close of CarmelFest on July 4.
Worrell
“We hope the community comes back together in the spirit of the holiday to enjoy CarmelFest, our biggest summer festival, and to celebrate our nation’s independence in the traditional way we’ve celebrated for many decades,” said City Council President Jeff Worrell, who has overseen the annual fireworks display for many years.
Click here to watch a video with more information about the 2023 CarmelFest fireworks.
“As we considered returning to this format, public safety was among our chief concerns,” Worrell said. “Our Carmel police and fire departments stepped up during COVID to support our efforts to separate this annual celebration for the good of the community. But that came with extra cost and added pressure for these departments who are not only responsible for the safety of the fireworks area, but also the rest of the city during this time.”
Now that the federal and state governments have declared the COVID restrictions over, the time has come to return to the traditional, single display of “rockets’ red glare” to celebrate the nation and our independence.
New launch site
There will be a new location for launching the fireworks in 2023. This year’s display will blast off from the parking lot of the Ice Skadium, located on 3rd Avenue SW, just south of Gradle Drive, making the display visible to those attending CarmelFest or finding spots in the area.
The show will be about eight minutes longer than previous shows and will once again include a musical score that will play over the FM airwaves of Carmel High School radio station WHJE, 91.3. (Note: You must have an actual radio to hear the musical score as online transmission of the radio station includes a delay of several seconds, which throws off the sound.)