Fireworks set for this Sunday

LOOK up to the skies this Sunday for the City of Ballarat’s annual fireworks display, held for the first time during the Summer Sundays program after councillors last year voted to move the event from its original 26 January scheduling.

The show is set to begin at 9.30pm at Lake Wendouree and last for 15 minutes, with the best seats in the house to the south, east and west of the lake.

Local pyrotechnician and director of Northern Fireworks, Matthew Batty, said he was especially excited to bring the colourful event back to the community after its cancellation last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The entire display has been designed to create multiple layers of height, colour and effects. It will fill the night sky across the lake in a fabulously colourful and rhythmic show,” he said.

Expect the show to go a lot higher than previous years, with twice as many 175-millimetre aerial display shells to be deployed and a greater number of total explosives.

“This will be the biggest fireworks Ballarat has ever seen, a wonderful way to celebrate the start of the year,” Ballarat mayor Cr Daniel Moloney said.

Loreto Point and the floating pontoons on the south side of the lake will not be accessible to the public during the show and all waterway activities will be paused from 3pm to midnight on the day.

Parking restrictions will also be scrapped around the lake, with the mayor urging patrons to be patient in the high volume of traffic surrounding the event.

A statement from the municipality also reminded residents to keep an eye on their pets during the show and keep them safely indoors if they could become scared by noise.