Colusa celebrated Americas birthday in a manner that would please Founding Father John Adams, who said Independence Day should be celebrated with pomp, parade, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of the continent to the other.
Hundreds of people showed up for Colusas first Watermelon Festival on Sunday, and even more turned out for the annual fireworks display.
The Fourth of July celebration was the second music-themed festival hosted by the City of Colusa.
As with Country in Colusa held on June 26, the Watermelon Festival on Sunday featured music on Main Street with people sitting along the levee to enjoy the show. This time, however, it was a remarkably cool 92 degrees, compared to high triple digit heat the weekend before.
The Watermelon Festival also featured music in the boat launch round-about, a watermelon crush in two baby pools, a beer garden at the Tap Room, and crazy bicycles for kids to ride. While the food trucks didnt make it due to staffing shortages, most people said the festival was very enjoyable.
” I think more people came to this event than last weeks Country in Colusa,” said Colusa Councilman Daniel Vaca.
Vaca said the citys goal is to boost economic development by promoting Colusa as a tourist destination, and to also provide activities that enhance quality of life, even if it means exploring new ideas to see what works.
” All we can do is try,” Vaca said. ” All we can do is try.
Fourth of July festivities in Colusa actually got underway earlier in the day with the fourth annual Jim Davison Rubbie Duckie Race.
The Colusa Lions Club hosted the race, dropping 859 rubber duckies into the Sacramento River for a face paced float to the Colusa Bridge.
The first place duck won $500 for Lidia Frantz. BJ Concretes second place finisher won $300, and DAnne Bresslers third place duck won her $200. This year, a fourth place prize was given out to Dennis Fox due to a typo on tickets. The Rubber Duckie Race raised about $3,000 to send Egling sixth graders to adventure camp, organizers said.
Boat operators, owners, and deckhands included Sean and Kristin Amsden, daughter Delaney and son Asher; Ralph and Debbie Sibley; Frank Davison and son Lucas; Pat Kittle and daughter Addison; Dave Tarr, Dale Thompson, Matt Reische and daughter Lillian, and Greg Ponciano.
Back at the festival on Main Street later in the evening, residents enjoyed the music of multiple groups, including Buck Ford and Township Band. They also ate slices of watermelon, compliments of City Manager Jesse Cain.
” This is a wonderful event,” said Mayra Gomez, whose family of seven enjoyed the festivities. ” When you have a big family, it is impossible to attend events that cost admission. It was nice for the city to have a free festival. We used to watch the fireworks from our friend’s house on Clay Street, and its great that it has come back to the river.
Sponsors for the festival included Hickel & Hickel, Colusa Industrial Properties, Compassleaf, Greenseuticals, Mannaco, Bob Norman, California Engineering Services, Golden Roots, Hoblit Motors, and SF Metalworks, according to the citys social media.
Following the festival, visitors sat in chairs along the levee to enjoy the fireworks display.
The popular event, which had been held the past few years at the Colusa County Fairgrounds because of the overgrown trees and fire risk, was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year, hot embers from the display sparked two fires in the dryer-than-normal canopy and brush along the river.
Firefighters went to work on the blaze around 10 PM, with fire crews working on flare-ups and hot spots over the following 72 hours.
City officials said Tuesday the fire on the east side of the river was attributed to the citys fireworks display, and was extinguished by Sacramento River firefighters. Fire on the west bank was located in deep undergrowth, which made entry by firefighters more difficult. That fire burned about 15 acres, with illegal fireworks not ruled out as a potential cause, city officials said. The total affected area from both fires is about 30 acres.
” Weve been dealing with multiple flare-ups since Sunday,” Colusa Chief Logan Conley said Tuesday in a statement. ” Im very proud of my team for their diligence and effort during this time.
CalFire contributed a hand crew plus two bulldozers and a Battalion Chief for overhead management.
Although all kinds of fireworks are a beloved tradition on Independence Day, local law enforcement and fire chiefs throughout Colusa County reported a large number of illegal fireworks being set off in Colusa, Arbuckle, Maxwell, and elsewhere in the county, increasing fire danger.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, 9,500 fires started by fireworks were reported to local fire departments across the nation in 2018, the last updated statistics. These fires caused five civilian deaths, 46 civilian injuries, and $105 million in direct property damage. Brush, grass, or forest fires account for three of every five (59 percent) of fireworks fires, the NFPA said. –