City of Albany has big July 4 celebration planned for Saturday

ALBANY – Dale Henry has been shooting off fireworks in Albany for 36 years, and on Saturday the city employee has one of the biggest displays of his career on tap.

“We’ve got 1,260 shells,” he said. “The folks inside the fairground are going to be in for a big surprise. It’s going to be a lot of moving and shooting them off in a short time. It’s going to be a big show.”

For the second year in a row, the city will host its Independence Day event at the Exchange Club Fairgrounds at 810 S. Westover Blvd., a move made last year due to ongoing construction work on the Oglethorpe Boulevard Bridge in downtown Albany.

Gates open at 3 p.m. for the show, with entertainment set to kick off at 6 p.m. Multiple groups are set to perform, including the SOS Band, founded by Albany native Abdoul Ra’oof.

“There’s a gentleman from Albany (who) went to Monroe (High School) and Albany State University who started that band,” Albany Recreation Director Steven Belk said. “He’ll be appearing in Albany for the first time” with the band.”

Guests are encouraged to bring lawn chairs, and coolers will be allowed but attendees will have to leave the alcoholic beverages at home. Water stations will be available at the site for the scorching heat, with the high temperature for Saturday forecast at 95 degrees, as well as vendors, Belk said.

The city is gearing up for a family event, with unaccompanied individuals under 16 prohibited.

“No one under 16 will be dropped off and left wandering around,” Albany Police Chief Michael Persley said. 

A clear-bag policy will be in effect, and no drones will be allowed on site, although individuals in areas nearby will be allowed to use drones as long as they are on property from which they have permission to fly them. Drone operators will not be allowed to fly them over the crowd, the chief said.

About 6,000 people showed up last year at the fairgrounds, with another 1,000 to 1,500 watching from sites nearby, Persley said. Albany officers will be assisted by the Dougherty County Police Department in providing security.

The Albany Fire Department has a recommendation for home fireworks: Don’t. And as for drinking and setting off fireworks, the message is: seriously, don’t.

“The preference is for residents to come out and celebrate America’s 250th birthday together,” Assistant Fire Chief Marcus Glass said.

“Our stand is to leave it to the professionals,” he said. “We, the city, will be shooting fireworks, and we invite everybody to celebrate it as a city.”

The fireworks display is scheduled to start at 9:30 p.m. and last for about 30 minutes. Officials advised leaving pets at home, as fireworks can scare animals.

“In my 36 years doing this, it’s amazing all the oohs and aahs of the little kids,” Henry said. “We have small stuff that’s going to be mixed in with the big stuff. I have a good crew of people that help me. We’ve got a lot of different city departments involved.”