Fireworks group to light up sky near Grand Coulee

The pyrotechnics are coming.

Look for a lot of noise and fireworks in the sky, Dec. 2 and 3, when fireworks experts from across the state gather on a 135-acre tract near Grand Coulee in Lincoln County.

Host to the event will be Alan Cain, who is in the process of completing his pyrotech license.

The occasion is a gathering of the Northwest Pyrotechnics Association, whose members gather at different locations to talk about fireworks, and put on a show for themselves and anyone who cares to watch.

The show is actually demonstrations by members of the organization, which promotes fireworks, but also the safety aspects of being around things that have a tendency to explode. The group holds several events each year.

The group’s purpose, its website says, is “to promote and encourage safe, legal, and artful pyrotechnic operation throughout the Northwest through training, demonstration, and exchange of information.”

Cain said the gathering is more a private thing than a public thing, but it always collects the curious and those who just like fireworks.

Licensing for the event will be through the local fire marshall, Rick Paris, who issues permits for things like this on behalf of Lincoln County Fire District 9.

Paris licensed the group last year for a similar gathering at the same location, uphill from Lakeview Terrace Trailer Park, about three miles out of Grand Coulee.

“We haven’t applied for the permit as yet, but it will be similar to the one from last year,” Cain stated. Cain said he plans to ask for the permit from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. both days.

This year, the NPA (Northwest Pyrotechnics Association) plans to hold an education seminar for fire departments and EMTs, to provide helpful information that will assist those assigned to fireworks events.

“The actual fireworks events will be Friday and Saturday, and Sunday we clean up,” Cain said.

The group will set off loud bombs during the daylight hours and the more colorful blasts at night, according to Cain.

The NPA will control access to the area for safety reasons, because “what goes up must come down,” Cain said.

Members of the group practice safety by wearing gloves and fire- retardant clothing, Cain said.

There’s also a $2 million insurance dollar policy that the group obtains.

There are about 140 members in the NPA, with some 25 percent of them carrying licenses. Cain said he has finished the classwork, and only has to turn it in to get his license.

“We would like to do an event at North Dam Park sometime in the near future,” Cain mentioned.