Plainfield — The fireworks display here July 4 was enjoyed by several thousand residents and was the finale of the town’s annual Independence Day festival. This was the 11th year for the fireworks show to be held at Hummel Park.
Guilford Civil Township and the Town of Plainfield partner for the festivities, each putting $11,500 toward the $23,000 fireworks display, which covers the insurance and the fireworks, contracted through International Fireworks Merchandisers (IFM). Representatives from IFM said Plainfield’s show is the second largest one they produce, next in line to the Labor Day SkyConcert in downtown Indianapolis.
“We have the event every year on the actual fourth of July — rain or shine,” said Park Administrator Josh Morrell, who oversees the Plainfield July 4th celebration and fireworks extravaganza.
Activities began at 5 p.m. and included a 24-foot tall rock climbing wall, a 20-foot tall inflatable slide, and an inflatable bounce house.
Several local non-profit organizations had booths as fundraisers, including the Kiwanis Club of Plainfield that sold elephant ears, Boy Scout Troop No. 399 that sold food and drinks, and Plainfield Police Explorer’s Post No. 777 that sold food, drinks, and glow jewelry.
The Plainfield Fire Department had various apparatuses on display for the public to view.
The Plainfield Chamber of Commerce held its annual rubber duck, with various prizes going to the winning duck owners.
Guilford Civil Township continued its summer concert series with the annual free 4th of July concert featuring “The Knightsmen,” a local 1960s garage band that performed classics from Cream, The Beatles, Roy Orbison, and The Beach Boys.
The show averages 3,000 people in attendance at the park, and 10,000 to 15,000 in the surrounding areas viewing it.
Of the 770 total shells fired, more than 300 of them were fired during the two-minute grand finale. The show itself is controlled by an electronic firing board, which allows the shells to be lit regardless of the weather.
Bill Edie, a Plainfield resident and crew leader for IFM, started heading up Plainfield’s fireworks show in 1985 when they were shot from the Elks Lodge on U.S. 40. He now heads up the operation at Hummel Park, a job which he is beginning to teach to his son so he can take over when Edie retires.
He explained that the way a shell fires is that a quick match is attached to it, and when the electronic firing board lights the match, it travels to the shell at 600-feet per second.
The shells used in the show range from three to 12 inches, with the 12-inch shells shooting about 1,200 feet into the air.
Steve Casse, whose parents own IFM, explained that while a small firework called a “three-inch salute” is only three inches across, it equals two to three sticks of dynamite when it explodes.
Edie said the crew spends Independence Day setting up and tearing down from 8 a.m. to midnight.
“It’s a labor of love,” he said. “Everybody has a good time and that’s what it’s all about.”
Morrell summed up the celebration well by saying, “Plainfield’s 4th of July celebration is a prime example of how two or more governmental entities can partner together for the benefit of a community as a whole. It takes a complete team effort from the Plainfield Town Council, Guilford Township Board of Trustees, Hummel Park staff, Plainfield Police Department, Plainfield Fire Department, Department of Public Works, and many others to fund, plan, and execute such a large and successful event on a yearly basis.”
lindsay.jones@flyergroup.com
Local News
Related Photos
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Crew members from IFM place mortars in trenches to hold fireworks shells. Lindsay J. Jones/Flyer photo
Discussion
Plainfield celebrates fourth with fireworks spectacular
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