Part of the setup for a 10 minute fireworks show. The boxes in the foreground produce the low effects.  The shells are much smaller  than you might see elsewhere, but because of the proximity of the crowd just across the river, the Natchitoches shows are spectacular.  During the Christmas season, more than 300,000 people will enjoy our fireworks shows.

Modern fireworks are more like mortars than rockets. They are fired  electronically and each cannon gets two wires,. One ignites a charge that  hurls the package aloft, the other ignites a delayed fuse that causes the firework itself to explode at a pre-determined altitude.

Some of their handiwork:  Christmas Fireworks