When I was about 12 or 13 my parents had a vacation home built on the west end of Galveston Island in Sea Isle. It was a new little sub-division about 5 miles father down the road from the more known and established one of Jamaica Beach. We called it the beach house but it was actually on the bay side on one of the original three canals that had been dredged that gave access to the bay and we had an great view of the sunsets.
Over the course of time, Sea Isle grew and more and more canals were dredged, more houses built and it became just one of many sub-divisions on the west end. Back during my teens though, it was still small enough that all the kids knew each other and the man who developed it (though he eventually went bankrupt) also sponsored some entertainments during the summer including a fireworks display every year on the Fourth.
They always set up the fireworks show on the beach for safety because down there with the constant wind coming off the gulf, if a house caught fire it only took about 30 minutes for it to be completely consumed. By the time the fire truck would get there from Jamaica Beach, it would all be over but the crying.
So, one year, maybe when I was about 15 or 16, we had all gathered on the beach at sunset, settled down with our chairs and refreshments to watch the show. The adults were drinking, had been drinking and I think the men who were setting up and lighting the fireworks were probably a few sheets to the wind.
They were set up a little farther down the beach from where we observers sat, a box on the beach beside them that held all the fireworks for the 30 minute planned display. One, two, three fireworks were set off, one after the other. Then, all of a sudden we heard a low curse and one of the men shouted “Run!”
The three men who were putting on the show scattered, hauling ass as fast as they could as the box of fireworks exploded behind them sending pyrotechnics upwards and outwards in all directions, the 30 minute show over in one big giant swirling, rocketing, popping, shower of sparks.
It was awesome.
A spark had landed in the box of fireworks setting one fuse alight and that was that.
Fortunately, no one was injured but it was the last time that there was an official fireworks display down at Sea Isle.
Leave it to those good old boys.
ReplyDeleteOH MY...run forrest run. Funny and scary. Love the story. Happy 4th Ms. Ellie, Linda
ReplyDeleteI would have been under my beach chair in terror. I'm kinda afraid of loud noises. Doesn't help that I know they're coming.
ReplyDeleteFireworks and drinking ... not a great combination
ReplyDeleteA memorable evening for sure. I've been to small diplays where one errant firework pulsated into the crowd unexpectedly. I can only imagine what the whole sheBANG was like. Hope you're having a good 4th, Ellen.
ReplyDeleteThat would have been some sight to see! (From a distance, of course.) ;)
ReplyDeleteYou sure know how to have a good time. Hope all well.
ReplyDeleteAwesome!
ReplyDeleteI prefer my fireworks display set up by people who know what they're doing. When my s-i-l did it a few years ago, he nearly burnt his hand off.
Have a great time.
wicked!! i saw something like this happen in the park just near us when a neighbour got a little loose and a whole heap of explosive colourful stuff went firing across the climbers and into the woods. it was awesome!! steven
ReplyDeletewicked!! i saw something like this happen in the park just near us when a neighbour got a little loose and a whole heap of explosive colourful stuff went firing across the climbers and into the woods. it was awesome!! steven
ReplyDeleteNow that was a wonderful memory...wonder if the guys remembered what happened.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a kid we were shooting fireworks but it was New Years. My cousin was wearing a sweatshirt with a hand warmer pouch in the front.
ReplyDeleteIt was in this handwarmer tunnel where he kept his firecrackers.
He lite one and threw it at my feet. He laughed hard at my firecracker dance. He wasn't thinking as he put his hand back in tunnel.
But he forgot to toss the match when he threw the firecracker and soon the match was lighting up the firecrackers in his sweatshirt.
I guess you know who got the last laugh.
Yikes. A Grand Finale that nobody expected! Lucky thing that nobody was hurt; it could have been so much worse.
ReplyDelete