Asked why they braved the rain, everyone said going to the fireworks display is tradition and they didn’t want to break tradition.
“It’s a shame because it usually has such a great turnout. The fireworks are amazing,” said Diana Palacio, who watched from the parking lot with their open trunk door overhead.
Palacio said the White Plains High School field was so packed last year her family had to watch from the far parking lot.
Despite the rain, Palacio, who has been attending the fireworks for years, said she enjoyed sharing the tradition with her sons Andres Jr., 6, and Alejandro, 5, who has attended every year of his life thus far. Andres excitedly yelled, “Popcornnn,” when his mother talked about the fair that is usually held before the fireworks. This year it was cancelled due to the weather.
The City of White Plains advised residents attending the display to watch from their homes and cars, but many still perched themselves on the fields behind White Plains High School. Like Palacio, Thomas Nixon said simply he wasn’t going to break his tradition of attending fireworks.
However, he said it was his first time in a long time attending the White Plains fireworks display after moving to Poughkeepsie years ago. He recently moved back home to White Plains.
Diana Escobar said her cousin came to White Plains from Columbia specifically to see the fireworks.
“We are all Americans, we love the US and we love the independence,” she said. “And the lights are just spectacular.”
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