America’s 250th anniversary is in full swing here at Pismo Beach with people who have been set up on the sand since early this morning. I’m your community reporter Makayla Richardson here for the city’s iconic 4th of July celebration.
By 9:00 Saturday morning, Pismo Beach was already full of tents and beachgoers, ready for the fireworks show scheduled 12 hours later. Ofelia Legaspi came with her family for the first time since 2015.
“We said we're going to get here early," Legaspi said. "We know it gets pretty busy, you know. We said we're going to set up on the beach, be here for the day, enjoy the day.”
Legaspi and her family left Visalia at 5 in the morning to get set up on the beach by 7:30.
She says by then, space was scarce but everyone was in high spirits.
“It feels like a big family, like a big, united family," Legaspi said. "Everyone's here for the same reason, for the show. We're all here for a peaceful good time on the beach.”
With so many people, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Paul Provence said first responders are taking extra precautions.
“It's great to be a part of the community and serve people and utilize the skills that I have and been taught to make sure that everybody is safe," Provence said.
Provence said ahead of the fourth, the fire and police departments went through a planning process to figure out the threat level of the event based on the 30 to 50 thousand people expected this year.
“We'll up-staff based on that," Provence said. "So we brought additional fire marshals and we brought additional fire personnel on board to staff an additional fire engine. We brought additional lifeguards in for the water safety portion of it. We also have additional Cal Fire law enforcement folks that are in the area that are patrolling.”
April Mcintosh said it has always been her dream to come to Pismo Beach for the 4th of July and with this year as the 250th, she said it was the perfect time to visit.
“To know that our country has been around this long and we have survived through so much turmoil and and all the things, it's very exciting to me to be a part of this and to be in a place where we get to celebrate it so freely is very heartwarming," Mcintosh.
As a reminder, all fireworks are banned in Pismo Beach, except for the show on the pier.
