There’s some not so good, but safe news for this year’s Canada Day celebrations in Parry Sound.
Director of Emergency Services, Dave Thompson, says after some careful consideration, the town has decided against fireworks this year.
“A restricted Fire Zone that’s put in place by the Ministry of Natural Resources supersedes our own municipal bylaws. And at this time, [April McNamara, the town’s Parks and Recreation Manager] and I have been discussing this for the past few days, knowing that we were into a little bit of a dire situation,” he says.
Speaking to council during Tuesday’s meeting, Thompson says he’s been in contact with the Ministry of Natural Resources adding they do not expect that the restricted Fire Zone will be lifted anytime soon.
“Not only is the entire Northeast and Northwest Ontario areas extremely dry, but there are also limited resources available to the MNR to respond to any situations if they do arise and that’s one of their reasons for keeping the RFZ in place,” he says.
Thompson says at the end of the day the safety of the public and the environment is the primary concern. McNamara says they are looking at picking a different date for the fireworks to happen when the fire ban has been lifted.
“At this point, our crystal ball is not very clear. It’s quite smoky right now, but Chief Thompson and I will work very closely together. And when a call has been made, the Town will see a lovely fireworks display. There’s still many other activities taking place over the course of Canada Day weekend,” she says.
McNamara says the Town’s RibFest celebrations start on Friday (June 30), running straight through to Sunday (July 2). On Saturday (July 1), she says traditional Canada Day activities will be underway with children’s Games, entertainment, live bands all weekend. She adds that Sunday will also see the return of Lumberjack Challenge with three shows taking place.