Community Corner

Red Bank Without Its Fireworks KaBoom

All was quiet on the streets of Red Bank this July 3 — a sign of the unwitting defiance of a fireworks tradition gone wrong.

And that's what it was — a tradition that went from community family-friendly fun to chaos with cost as  high as $250,000 to the borough, officials have said. So, no, there were no public July 3 fireworks displays in Red Bank this year, not since the last KaBoom show in 2011. There were some booms, though, just not KaBoom booms.  

There was a high tab private Riverview Medical Center fundraiser at an estate on the Navesink and fireworks were part of the entertainment. Private as the affair was, everyone in the area could see them — prevailing through the rain for about an hour.

But, that was it for the immediate area — no KaBoom. No more. There has been chatter about compromise at meetings since the kibosh was put on KaBoom. Officials had talked about trying to bring fireworks back to Red Bank on a smaller, more community-focused scale.  

But, so far, they have not figured out a way to do it without disappointing residents who complained that their town was impossible to traverse on the holiday, dangerous because of inordinate traffic and defiant drivers, and litter strewn by inconsiderate visitors.

In 2011, the last time KaBoom was on the Navesink, there was a reported overload of raucous behavior and many arrests. Someone even attempted to drive a car through thousands of people on a closed-off Front Street.

With the thought of bringing smaller-scale fireworks back to town, there was also the feeling, expressed by officials, that it might be disappointing for those expecting a show of the same grandiose KaBoom scale.

Bottom line: Mayor Pat Menna has said that the show just became impractical. It cost the borough too much in too many ways.

That may change. Just not now.

For those who have lived in the area for a long time, it's been a true breaking of tradition, though. The memories of the original Red Bank fireworks, run by the local Chamber of Commerce, are more often than not emblazoned in many a childhood memory. KaBoom, run on private and business donations, too — before it became unmanageable.

Since seemingly the dawn of time, or actually 1959, people within a mile or two radius of Red Bank culminated the holiday's barbecues slinging blankets over their shoulders, grabbing lawn chairs and hiking over to Marine Park to see the show. If you were lucky enough to own a boat or know someone who did, you got a view like none other on the Navesink as close as you could get to the barge.

People would tune in to a radio station (which I'm too old to remember) and share earplugs on transistor radios to hear the piped-in music. There were tons of oohs an ahhhs, applause and boat horn beeps peppering it all.

It was tradition — one that just ended up inadvertently growing too far out of community bounds for its own sustainability. Maybe next year.

In the meantime, if you're missing the Fourth of July without Red Bank fireworks, take a look at the YouTube video above. And send us photos and videos of your own, if you like. Enjoy. And happy Independence Day!



Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here