Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
A week after deadly Texas flooding, hope fades but resilience grows. Chevron right
Recovery teams, displaced residents in Texas face brutal heat. Chevron right

Columbus, OH

71°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

71°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

News / Weather Forecasts

How is the weather shaping up for Independence Day fireworks displays?

By Mark Puleo, AccuWeather staff writer

Published Jun 30, 2020 3:09 PM EDT

Copied

The Fourth of July is not only known for its fireworks celebrating America's birthday. It's also known for some extreme weather that has disrupted festivities.

As the United States prepares to celebrate its 244th birthday, this year's time-honored festivities, like barbecues, lawn games and fireworks, may look and feel a little different than usual for many. Amid a pandemic and social distancing concerns, smaller groups and fewer parties may mean more eyes from home will be looking toward the skies -- or the flatscreen TVs -- to see the annual firework displays. However, not every area of the country will enjoy an equally great view of the spectacular pyrotechnics shows.

In New York City, the Independence Day celebration has been turned into a week-long affair with fireworks starting to light up the sky on Monday night and running through July Fourth on Saturday. In South Dakota, a firework display was launched over Mt. Rushmore for the first time since 2009, and President Donald Trump was in attendance.

Annual shows in some major cities, like Washington, D.C., are still on, but the weather in other cities, such as Denver and Santa Fe, New Mexico, has forced planned events to be canceled. Meanwhile, the coronavirus pandemic has forced many other cities to shutter celebrations as well.

For those cities still putting on events, read on to see how the weather and conditions may affect the celebration:

New York City and Northeast

In this Friday, June 19, 2020 photo, fireworks explode during Juneteenth celebrations above the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood in the Brooklyn borough of New York. The Manhattan skyline is seen in the background. They light up the sky in celebration, best known in the U.S. as a way to highlight Independence Day. This year, fireworks aren't being saved for special events. They've become a nightly nuisance from Connecticut to California, angering sleep-deprived citizens and alarming local officials. (AP Photo/John Minchillo, File)

Some places in the Northeast, like Boston, have canceled annual shows weeks ago because of the pandemic, but New York City went in the opposite direction and ramped up its celebrations to make this year's Fourth of July a weeklong event that aims to discourage people from congregating on one specific night.

After daily showers and thunderstorms for much of the week, any festivities have the potential for interruptions this weekend as well.

AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dean Devore stated: "Some models think it could be pretty nice this holiday weekend," referring to computer weather models meteorologists look at when formulating a forecast, but that "there are other models that there may be some chances of thunderstorms popping up in the afternoons and evenings. We'll have to wait to see how it plays out."

Devore said more stormy concerns could arrive from a system moving through the Great Lakes.

"There's a system that will come through the Great Lakes and bring just general thunderstorm and shower chances into the weekend," Devore said. "The concern is towards the weekend: Is enough of the system going to stamp itself out towards the Eastern Seaboard? We could get, in addition to daily thunderstorm chances, an enhancement of even more than that."

Washington, D.C.

Fireworks explode near the White House in Washington Saturday, July 4, 2009.(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

The annual fireworks extravaganza in the nation's capital famously draws large crowds and is one of the premiere fireworks shows in the country. While the crowds won't be as dense this year, the weather may make for a tough year for the spectators that do attend. AccuWeather RealFeel Temperatures in D.C. will near the triple digits during the day and cool off only to the middle 80s during the evening hours.

"D.C. will be one of those battlezones as we head into the weekend," Devore said. "There's a slight chance there may be some showers and thunderstorms in the area."

Southwest

In the Southwest, particularly in states that have already seen heightened wildfire risks, many locations are canceling fireworks plans due to drought conditions.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham issued an executive order earlier this week urging New Mexico cities and counties to ban the retail sale of fireworks due to drought as the state face high risks of wildfires. According to The Santa Fe New Mexican, the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service and National Park Service also have bans.

Farther north in Colorado, most communities around Denver have also canceled fireworks shows due to a mix of coronavirus and wildfire risk concerns.

Keep an eye on the forecast

Throughout the nation, Devore said residents should keep an updated eye on the forecasts as holiday plans may need to be shifted around with Mother Nature's plans. Android users and iPhone users can do that easily by using the free AccuWeather app, which offers minute-by-minute forecasts and fast delivery of severe weather alerts.

"As your weekend plans evolve including fireworks or a trip to the beach, this will be one of those patterns where you'll need to continue checking in because the amount and frequency of thunderstorms can change by day and even times of the day," Devore said. "There may be some days where it'll be really nice in the morning and then get not so nice by the afternoon, or vice versa. So those are the kinds of things that people should keep checking back with us for as we get towards the end of the week."

Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.

Report a Typo
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
Comments
Hide Comments

Weather News

Weather News

A week after deadly Texas flooding, hope fades but resilience grows

Jul. 10, 2025
Severe Weather

Rounds of severe storms to rattle, drench central US

Jul. 10, 2025
video

Abandoned cars submerged by severe flooding in North Carolina

Jul. 10, 2025
video

Before-and-after pictures show devastation caused by Texas floods

Jul. 9, 2025
Severe Weather

Severe weather to rumble in the central US through the holiday weekend

Jul. 6, 2025
Weather News

Record sargassum seaweed piles up on Caribbean islands, Gulf

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather Forecasts

Texas Hill Country recovery, cleanup teams to face brutal July weather

15 hours ago

Weather News

State inspection before floods found Camp Mystic had emergency plan

20 hours ago

Weather News

Deadly flash flooding devastates wildfire-scarred New Mexico town

8 hours ago

Astronomy

1st full moon of summer to rise Thursday night

1 day ago

Weather News

Most Texas flood victims face devastation without flood insurance

18 hours ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Health

How can families handle new anxieties around summer camp?

14 hours ago

AccuWeather Ready

Floodwater rising in your house? Do this

2 days ago

Weather News

Orcas are bringing humans gifts of food – but why?

14 hours ago

Weather News

Earthquake swarm detected at Mount Rainier, biggest since 2009

19 hours ago

Weather News

The US has a plan to breed millions of flies and drop them from planes

14 hours ago

AccuWeather Weather Forecasts How is the weather shaping up for Independence Day fireworks displays?
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...