‘We prepare for anything’: All hands on deck to keep July 4th festivities safe, Philly police say

PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Thousands are expected to gather once again on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway for the Fourth of July concert and fireworks show . And with a national heightened security alert, Philadelphia police say they’re prepared for anything.

The city hosts many large events each year, and this July Fourth is no different: All hands are on deck.

“We kind of prepare for anything because, in past years, we would have some of the younger crowd go down on Broad Street and sometimes go down on South Street and get a little bit too crazy,” recalled Deputy Commissioner James Kelly.

The No. 1 thing they worry about: “A large crowd and afterward — getting everyone in an orderly fashion,” he said.

Kelly said people don’t fire guns in the air for the Fourth as much as they do on New Year’s — but in 2022, a highway patrol officer was struck in the head by a falling bullet while on the Parkway. It was believed to have been shot miles away.

“Whatever goes up has to come down, and you don’t know where it’s coming down,” he said. “God forbid it hits a child or anyone for that matter.”

City officials said there is currently a national heightened security risk, which they include in their plans.