Annual Emporia firework show shoots off almost 800 shells

EMPORIA ( KSNT ) – The northeast Kansas sky was lit up with fireworks this Fourth of July.

The Emporia community celebrated the Fourth of July with a concert and firework show at Welch Stadium at Emporia State University. Bernie Toso has been doing this show for 19 years. He gave 27 News a behind the scenes look: walked through the staging area, and showed off the 795 shells of all sizes rigged up. Torso said it took a crew of 28 people to put this together. He originally said last year would be his final time, but had to come back because it’s just too much fun.

He said the show has changed quite a bit over the years, and it gets a little better each time.

“We started out match lighting, which is like a fusie taped to a broomstick and it’s advanced a long way from there,” Torso said. “We’ve gone through several systems and now we’re 100% remote.”

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