HENRICO COUNTY, Va. — Henrico County is adjusting its Fourth of July celebrations and opening cooling centers as a record-breaking heatwave is expected to grip the region this holiday weekend.
The Friday fireworks show at Dorey Park will still take place, but with a one-hour delay. The event will now begin at 7 p.m. and will feature a concert and food trucks, with no additional activities.
"We have delayed it by an hour. We won't start until 7pm and it's just going to be an evening concert. So, there will be a concert, food trucks, there will be no other activities, but we will end the evening with fireworks," Henrico Recreation and Parks Director John Zannino said.
Saturday's 250th celebration at Crump Park will also see changes. The event, originally scheduled to begin at 4 p.m., will now start at 6 p.m. Activities such as the fun zone and roving entertainers have been removed from the program.
"We were originally starting at 4pm, now we are starting at 6pm, and again stripping away some of those activities like the fun zone and roving entertainers so it will be an evening concert with the Richmond symphony and then we will conclude the show with the Richmond symphony," Zannino said.
Zannino said the adjusted schedule is designed to protect both the public and county staff working the events.
"We are doing multiple shifts so that the ones who are setting up are not the ones that are working the event. If you are working on the 3rd, you are not working on the 4th. That condensed time certainly helps staff not just recreation and parks, but our public safety partners, all of our vendors," Zannino said.
To help residents escape the heat, Henrico County is opening cooling centers that would normally be closed on holidays like the Fourth of July. Libbie Mill Library and the Eastern Recreation Center on Laburnum Avenue will both serve as cooling centers.
"Once we learned about the heat and the advisories we decided to open up Libbie Mill library," Henrico Deputy County Manager for Community Affairs Monica Smith-Callahan said.
"We have decided to open one on our east end at the Eastern Rec. Center on Laburnum Ave. Which will also serve as a cooling center. We will have the conference space there available," Smith-Callahan said.
Library operations at Libbie Mill and the gym at the Eastern Recreation Center will not be available during the cooling center hours. All of Henrico's splash pads will be operational for residents looking for ways to cool off.
"And the hope is that families will make the right decisions based on what is appropriate for them," Smith-Callahan said.
Henrico County is not alone in providing relief to residents. The Salvation Army cooling shelter on Chamberlayne Avenue in Richmond, which the county helps fund, will open its doors from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. According to the Richmond website, snacks will be served at the cooling center during consecutive hours of temperatures reaching 92 degrees or higher in a day, and the site will remain open overnight if temperatures are predicted to be 92°F or higher at 9 p.m.
Richmond Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities outdoor pools will also be open to the public from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. each day.
Click here for a list of Fourth of July events.
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