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Sky-lighters | mySuburbanLife.com

Sky-lighters
Behind the scenes of a fireworks show
Published: Thursday, Aug. 8, 2013 4:16 p.m.CDT

COUNTRYSIDE Visible by the red glow of the highway flare clutched in his right hand, Jason
Diedrick bent over and reached for the next fuse on the line.
He lit it, then quickly stood tall, stepped back and turned his shoulders away from the tube as it
launched a 3-inch-diameter shell into the night sky. The firework detonated with a crack,
shooting color in all directions. Onlookers exhaled oooohs and whoaaaas, by which time
Diedrick already was igniting the next one.
Ive yet to find a disappointed audience that boos you, said Dan Miller of Mad Bomber
Fireworks Productions, which put on the first-ever fireworks show in Countryside on Friday at
Countryside Park. The show was sponsored by the city and the Park District of La Grange.
Setup started at 5:30 p.m. for the 9 p.m. show. Two rows of homemade wooden racks separated
by about 50 feet held hundreds of tubes, made of either cardboard or high-density polyethylene.
Miller, his son, Don, and Diedrick stuff each firework shell into its launching tube individually,
and Miller uses a stick to make sure the shells are flush with the bottom of the tubes.
Its got to be flush on the bottom so the lift charge on the bottom, which is black powder, just
propels [the shell] straight up the tube, said Miller, of Elgin, who has been producing fireworks
shows for the past 40 years, including the past five in La Grange.
It reaches a height of anywhere between 120, 150 feet. It detonates up there with a secondary
fuse, which creates what we call the break or the pattern.
Some of the tubes point directly upward, while others are angled.
Everyone else likes to shoot it straight up Its all going in one area, Miller said. The sky is
our canvas and we paint the entire canvas. Its not just one splotch.
One section of launch tubes is reserved for the finale, the only part of Millers show that involves
electronics (some companies do all-electronic shows). So they all launch together, each of the
strings attached to the finale fireworks have to be tied together with masking tape, which takes a
while. Its all for those final seconds of amazement. Miller ends his show by flipping a switch on
a control board 75 feet away, connected to the racks holding the finale shells by a wire.
Watching Diedrick set off each firework his head a foot or so from the launching tube scares
you almost each time. But Miller said the professional fireworks industry has become almost
foolproof over the past 40 years. In 1976, he blew out his right eardrum launching fireworks.
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Sky-lighters | mySuburbanLife.com

Today, hearing protection is mandatory, as are many other precautions.

Before the show, Miller met with local fire and city officials to measure a fenced-off area 210 feet
from the launch zone in each direction. He gauged the wind throughout the day to make sure
the fireworks wouldnt drift too close to the homes on either side of the park. Pleasantview Fire
Protection District officials observed Millers setup process.
A lot of its common sense,Miller said. But if youre not instructed the right way, the mistakes
are unforgivable.

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