Grucci: Fireworks mishap brought lessons for better safety 

A fire-starting mishap at the end of the Grucci fireworks at Eisenhower Park Friday has led to “subtle changes” in positioning of mortar stands that enhanced safety for other shows, the company's president and CEO, Phil Grucci, said Tuesday.

The incident, caught on cellphone videos, occurred when falling debris landed on electrical wires, prematurely setting off mortars and starting a fire at the end of the popular “Celebrating America” show at the Harry Chapin Lakeside Theatre, Grucci said.

But, he said, while there was a small blaze on the golf driving range area where the fireworks were set off, the damage, which town and county officials called minimal, was in so-called “fallout areas” and “frozen zones,” far-removed from the estimated crowd of 20,000.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said Saturday no one was hurt and that “several minor fires in brush areas” were extinguished in “a relatively short amount of time” by firefighters. A spokesman for Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said there was “no significant damage” to the park — and that all Eisenhower golf courses were open Saturday.

Grucci said Tuesday the fallout was minimal because national and county safety protocols worked as expected, noting that local protocols for shows are even more stringent than the national standards.

Still, he said, following discussions with police and fire officials, Grucci technicians made what he called “subtle changes” to positioning of mortar stands at other shows over the weekend — and will continue to rethink ways to make future shows safer.

“If we shrugged our shoulders and just walked away and didn’t think about what happened, that would be irresponsible,” Grucci said. “We consulted with the Nassau County Bomb Squad, the police department, fire officials to see what we could do even better … The result was some subtle changes to make sure that a reoccurrence didn’t occur."

“You want people to feel comfortable when they come to a show. They should feel even more comfortable now.”

Grucci fireworks were featured at seven presidential inaugurations, the centennial celebration of the Statue of Liberty and Brooklyn Bridge, World's Fairs, the 2020 Republican National Convention and the Olympic Games.

Grucci said the company has continually made safety improvements — a focus that did not come without cost. A 1983 explosion at the old Grucci compound in Bellport killed two family members and led to significant improvements in manufacturing, storage and shows.

“In the Seventies and Eighties my grandfather used to do shows at all the local racetracks — Riverhead Raceway, Islip Speedway, Westhampton — and the standards were far-different then,” Grucci said. “I can remember back in 1978 being at Riverhead Raceway and firing off the program from the middle of the infield. It was a different world back then.”

By John Valenti

john.valenti@newsday.com

John Valenti, a reporter at Newsday since 1981, has been honored nationally by the Associated Press and Society of the Silurians for investigative, enterprise and breaking news reporting, as well as column writing, and is the author of “Swee'pea,” a book about former New York playground basketball star Lloyd Daniels. Valenti is featured in the Emmy Award-winning ESPN 30-for-30 film “Big Shot.”