Birmingham's 2012 Fireworks Display Officially Canceled

Birmingham's has been officially canceled due to a combination of the heat, unpredictable weather and power outages throughout the city's southwestern neighborhoods.

Assistant Fire Chief John Connaughton said the city decided to cancel the event, which traditionally takes place around the 4th of July at the , around 4:30 p.m. after the display had been postponed once due to bad weather Tuesday evening.

"We can't say that there won't be any thunderstorms and we can't get all those people in there and take a chance," Connaughton said. 

Connaughton said there are no storms on the radar at the moment but the extreme heat — temperatures are forecasted to approach 90 degrees Thursday — makes the weather unpredictable.

"When you have these hot, hot conditions, these storms can just pop up," he said. "I don't want to have thousands of people (at the golf course) and risk a lightning strike."

In addition, Connaughton said many homes in the city's southwestern neighborhood — near Cranbrook Road between 14 Mile and Maple — were without power all day since a severe thunderstorm ripped through the area early Thursday morning.

, however Connaughton said the Lincoln Hills clubhouse was still without power around 5 p.m. Thursday.

In addition, Connaughton said firefighters and police officers had been responding to downed wires all day. Several traffic lights near the golf course have also been without power all day, Connaughton said, meaning controlling traffic before and after the fireworks would be difficult and potentially dangerous.

Connaughton said he doesn't believe the city will reschedule the fireworks display — a disappointment, he said, since he doesn't believe Birmingham has ever had to cancel the event.

"It's a beautiful show," he said. "It's very family-friendly. The (golf) course is perfect. The kids can run around. People are playing catch and throwing balls around."