Bellingham’s Fourth of July festival and fireworks officially canceled by coronavirus
They still will likely be fireworks in Whatcom County on the Fourth of July, just like always, but none of them will be part of any community shows or festivals to celebrate Independence Day.
Haggen, the Port of Bellingham and the Bellingham Regional Chamber of Commerce announced late Friday that they have canceled the 2020 Haggen Family Fourth of July Celebration in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Canceling this event has been an especially difficult decision, given that this would have been our 25th consecutive year of celebrating the Haggen Family Fourth of July with our Whatcom County friends and neighbors,” Marketing Events Coordinator at Haggen Pilar V. Hari said in a release about the decision.
The Blaine Chamber of Commerce had already canceled its Old Fashioned Fourth of July Celebration, according to its website.
The announcement that Bellingham also was cancelling its annual festival and fireworks show came days after Whatcom County Health Department Director Erika Lautenbach recommended cancelling all summer events to help maintain coronavirus social distancing measures.
A desire to follow that order was the reason Haggen, the Port and the Chamber of Commerce decided to cancel the celebration, according to the release.
Coronavirus concerns also made planning difficult, the release stated, as local food and entertainment vendors were unable to commit to the festival, and even obtaining the fireworks was uncertain.
This story will be updated.
