No July 4th fireworks in Ocean City, mayor says

The Jersey Shore town also decided against having its annual Night in Venice boat parade due to the coronavirus.

Spectators stand in the water at Ocean City, N.J. to watch the Fourth of July fireworks in 2018.Read more

Published Jun. 22, 2020, 10:03 p.m. ET

The mayor of Ocean City, N.J., announced Monday that his town will not have Fourth of July fireworks or the popular Night in Venice event later next month because of coronavirus concerns.

“I believe these are important traditions to preserve, and I had hoped that we would be able to plan for safe events,” Mayor Jay A. Gillian said in a statement.

“But with the enormous influx of people we’ve seen over the past few weeks and with the governor still prohibiting mass gatherings and dense crowds, we do not believe it would be responsible to continue with these popular events. The health and safety of everybody who loves Ocean City will always be our top priority,” Gillian said.

The Night in Venice event, the town’s annual boat parade, had been tentatively scheduled for July 18.