CANMORE – The Town of Canmore is moving forward with a New Year's Eve fireworks display for the community.
While most events to mark the changing of the year were cancelled, including the traditional party on the pond, the municipality has been working on creating a COVID-19 safe fireworks display for the occasion.
"We are going ahead with a high-level fireworks display at 9 p.m. on New Year's Eve," said Mayor John Borrowman Tuesday (Dec. 22). "They will be in an undisclosed location and we want to emphasize that people should watch them from their homes, or somewhere secluded and not group up."
Canmore council voted on Dec. 10 to support those efforts and give its blessing for administration to continue with those plans.
However, after that political direction was given, Alberta Health Services (AHS) in the region recommended against it. Officials with AHS and environmental public health (EPH) indicated that people will want to gather to watch the display, despite direction to avoid being in groups outside.
"The Town was provided guidance in line with what AHS and EPH has told other municipalities which have requested input concerning COVID-19 safety in relation to outdoor gatherings," wrote James Wood, director of media relations and issues management, in an email.
"Even though the Town may not have planned to reveal the location from which the fireworks were to be set off, it’s natural for people to want to gather to watch – and controlling access to popular viewing areas would be difficult to maintain."
However, the province's chief medical officer of health indicated in a conference call with municipalities that drive-in style fireworks displays could go ahead if they were done in a way that avoided gatherings, which are currently prohibited under public health measures.
After a week of communicating with AHS and the chief medical officer of health's office, the decision was made by the Town of Canmore that it could successfully mitigate the fireworks display to meet social distancing guidelines.
"This is not meant to be a group activity," Borrowman said. "But it is one way of finishing a really difficult year in a slightly colourful and happy way.
"It may stand for the hope that we have for 2021 to be a much better year."
