SEATTLE - Three tons of explosives are required for the 20-minute fireworks show at Gas Works Park in Seattle. That's more than 2,000 fireworks shells including the 10-inch-diameter kind that can shoot as high as 1,200 feet, and spread fireworks 1,000 feet wide. "There are thousands of pieces in the show. They all have to be wired correctly. Each piece gets a designated circuit so the computer can fire it correctly so that all has to be careully checked and rechecked," said pyrotechnician Jon Berson. This year's Seattle extravaganza above Lake Union almost didn't happen. Then local businesses and individuals donated the $500,000 needed for the show. The city of Seattle didn't want a truck loaded with explosives parked in town. So, using two drivers, the truck was driven straight through from Sacramento, Calif., (with a brief stopover in Olympia) to get to Seattle the day before the show. Then the shells were loaded onto two big iron barges and towed into place on Lake Union.
