By Wally Kennedy
wkennedy@joplinglobe.com
BRANSON, Mo. — Fireworks in September?
Visitors to Table Rock Dam will be able to see a huge fireworks display Saturday in connection with the conclusion of the dam’s 50th anniversary celebration.
Greg Oller, manager of Table Rock Lake, said, “I have been told this fireworks display will be on the same scale as the opening and closing of an Olympic celebration.
“We’re going to have a big bang for the conclusion of our 50th anniversary.’’
The American Pyrotechnics Association (APA) is holding its annual meeting and convention this week in Branson. Fireworks retailers, importers and suppliers from all over the world are showing off their latest wares. The APA will be staging demonstrations.
The first will be at 9:15 p.m. Friday at The Branson Landing waterfront shopping area. On Saturday, the association will open its trade show to the general public from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Hilton Branson Convention Center. Admission is free.
The convention fireworks finale will start at 9 p.m. Saturday at Moonshine Beach at the north end of Table Rock Dam, which is about six miles southwest of Branson, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the dam. There is limited parking available in the area. The Missouri Department of Transportation, the Missouri State Highway Patrol and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will control access and parking in the area.
Alternate viewing locations include Combs Ferry Recreation Area at the end of Route JJ and Old Highway 86, and Indian Point.
Oller said, “This is really not our event, but we are providing the real estate for this to happen.’’
With limited parking, the prime viewing area could be the lake itself.
“We expect a lot of boaters out there,” Oller said. “The Missouri State Water Patrol will set up a perimeter to prevent fallout from the fireworks hitting the boats.”
The 50th anniversary of the dam was officially celebrated in June. The dam rose from the bed of the White River as a flood-control project. It also produces hydroelectric power.
Dam facts
The average annual market value of the electricity produced at the dam and marketed by the Southwestern Power Administration is $10 million.
Construction of the dam was started in October 1954 and completed in August 1958. Construction of the powerhouse and switchyard was completed in June 1959. Commercial generation began in June 1959.
The dam’s four generators produce 200,000 kilowatts of electricity an hour. An oil-fired plant would require 13,000 gallons of fuel to equal that output.
Local News
<img src="http://www.joplinglobeonline.com/images/zope/extra.gif" border=0> ‘Big bang’ to punctuate dam’s 50th anniversary <font color="#ff0000">w/ Table Rock Dam, lake info & photos</font>
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