The Fourth of July Fireworks and Harbor Illumination were canceled after the fireworks barge caught fire last Thursday.
The cause of the barge fire is currently under investigation, but Fire Chief Jason Gilliland said it was an accident.
Gilliland said “there were still some hot materials left over and smoldering” from when the barge was used in a Lynn fireworks show on July 3.
Event organizers said that at approximately 1:30 a.m. on Thursday, there was a barge fire at the mouth of Marblehead Harbor.
“There was a fire on the barge in the middle of the night,” organizers said in a statement. “The fire marshal won’t allow our vendor to perform any fireworks until determination of how the barge was able to catch fire.”
The department worked with the Coast Guard, Massachusetts Environmental Police, and the Beverly Fire Department to put out the flames.
After the fire, the Marblehead Fireworks Committee decided not to reschedule the event.
“We are very sorry to have to announce that the Marblehead Fireworks and Harbor Illumination 2024 are not going to be happening this year,” a press release from the committee reads. “Fortunately, nobody was on the barge at that time and there were no injuries reported, as far as we know. Again, as a result of this incident, the Fireworks Committee has determined that we are unable to have the Fireworks and Harbor Illumination this year.”
The Fire Department is looking for any pictures or videos from the barge fire to assist with the investigation. Anyone who has pictures or videos can send them to ridgee@marblehead.org.