A rain-free night of Long Island fireworks, but keep umbrella close

Rain and thunderstorms held off across Long Island late Thursday, clearing the way for a night of fireworks viewing amid partly cloudy skies and steady gusts.

Even so, nightowls would be wise to keep the umbrella close, according to the National Weather Service.

David Stark, a meteorologist with the weather service's Upton office, said the updated forecast calls for rain likely to begin before midnight.

Fireworks shows were scheduled across the region Thursday night. Catholic Health Amphitheater at Bald Hill in Farmingville, Macy's 4th of July fireworks show over the Hudson River in New York City and Jovia Financial Credit Union Fireworks Spectacular at Jones Beach started at 9:15, 9:25 and 9:30 p.m., respectively

Jones Beach had reached full capacity and stopped allowing vehicles at 9 p.m., said George Gorman, Long Island regional director of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. The fireworks show drew a crowd of 194,000, Gorman said.

Shortly before 6 p.m., Gorman had told Newsday that Jones Beach was at about 60% capacity, with a roughly equal number of vehicles arriving as they are leaving.

Grucci, whose company is scheduled to produce a dozen displays across Long Island in coming days, including the Bald Hill show Thursday, said he was also keeping a close eye on the weather, but that pyrotechnicians — the professionals putting on all these displays — could adjust their plans to improve the chances of a successful show. 

His teams will keep their shells and launching mortars dry under tarps. The tarps need to come off before the show starts, but the equipment can sustain 30 minutes of rain.

“The problem with rain is that it's more uncomfortable for the audience,” Grucci said. “For us, the biggest issue is the wind.”

That's because wind affects loft: “When you've got blowing wind at 20 to 25 miles per hour, it affects the trajectory” of shells, he said. “You could have them drifting closer to the audience than desired.”

In windy conditions, pyrotechnicians might cut high-altitude or long-burning willow shells from their programs, he said. 

Cloud cover is also a concern, but mostly an aesthetic one. For shells that detonate above clouds, “you'll see the hue of the color but you won't see detail.” And because low cloud cover means high humidity, “there's a lingering element of smoke. It attaches to that moisture and if there's no breeze, a show can get smoked out. It becomes very difficult to see.” 

Nighttime weather wasn't the only concern. A National Weather Service coastal hazard message Thursday warned: “Life threatening rip currents are likely for all people entering the surf zone” at Nassau County beaches from noon through the evening. “Anyone visiting the beaches should stay out of the surf.” The hazard message also applied to Queens and Brooklyn, but not Suffolk County.

By late morning, Gorman said his lifeguards were reporting no issues, but would do “beach by beach, field by field evaluations” of water conditions throughout the day. Lifeguards could restrict swimming to near-shore, or allow only wading, or no swimming at all, he said. 

Attendance at state park beaches was brisk, with one hiccup at Robert Moses, Gorman said in an email.

An 11:30 a.m. crash on the Fire Island Inlet span of the bridge leading to the park brought traffic in both directions to a standstill. State park police did not immediately comment on details of the incident or how long it took to reopen the bridge.

By midafternoon, Jones Beach was at close to 60% capacity, Gorman said. Orient Beach and Gilgo state parks were filled to capacity. Sunken Meadow State Park filled to capacity before noon, with traffic diverted off Sunken Meadow Parkway at Pulaski Road. 

With Robert Brodsky