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By Chris Brown

No chance for regular festivities

Fireworks to go ahead but Canada Day in Kin Coulee cancelled

Apr 22, 2020 | 2:25 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The Canada Day celebrations in Medicine Hat are the latest large summer event to be stricken from the calendar due to COVID-19.

But the July 1 night sky will still be lit and loud over Medicine Hat.

“The board made the decision to cancel Canada Day in its present format for this year,” said Garry Procter, chairman of the Medicine Hat and District Canada Day Society. “There’s no chance that we’re going to get a gathering of that size safely to Canada Day. So what we’ve decided is we are going to move forward with the fireworks.”

Procter says the City of Medicine Hat is on board with the fireworks going ahead, though arrangements about crowds at the most popular viewing spots – Kin Coulee Park, the top of College Hill, the Saamis Teepee and the top of Division Avenue near Heights Baptist Church – will need to be finalized.

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“Our (city) liaison is very much in favour of having the fireworks because that’s such a big thing,” Procter said.

“The community always comes together on this one, it’s a community event and we’ll make it happen.”

Procter said the society also plans to put together a documentary-type video of past Canada Day celebrations and will post and share it as many ways as possible.

“We’ve got plenty of time to put a really top-notch one together. We’ve got such tremendous footage form over the years and so many different bands we’ve had.”