Dazzling Fireworks Light Up Tokyo Bay After 11-Year Wait

Crowds in raincoats packed a waterfront viewing area on Saturday, October 24, as the Tokyo Bay Grand Fireworks Festival lit up the sky for the first time in 11 years.

X user Kayo Osumi filmed gold, red and green shells bursting around a tall lattice tower as spectators lined the wet promenade, with the lights of Rainbow Bridge glowing across the bay.

“The Tokyo Bay Grand Fireworks Festival ended safely. It rained from the morning, so I think the preparations were really tough, but thank you so much to the fireworks crews, the staff at the venue and everyone else! It was so good to watch from up close,” the filmer wrote, adding that they would bring along their family, who stayed home because of the rain, next time.

About 12,000 fireworks were launched from the water off Harumi Pier, and about 110,000 ticket holders attended. Organisers went ahead despite the rain forecast and banned umbrellas at viewing areas.

The festival, last held in 2015, was revived by Tokyo’s Chuo and Minato wards to mark their 80th anniversaries, and moved from August to October to avoid extreme heat and sudden storms.