Freedom 250’s massive July 4 fireworks show, in coordination with the Trump administration, has officially broken the record for the largest fireworks display, according to Guinness World Records.
The 840,537 fireworks detonated on the National Mall in celebration of America’s 250th anniversary beat the previous record by more than 29,000 fireworks.
The milestone means President Donald Trump fulfilled his promise that the fireworks display would be the “LARGEST FIREWORKS SHOW IN HISTORY.”
Freedom 250, the White House-backed public-private partnership, had hoped to set the new Guinness World Record with the fireworks display.
“No other president in history could have accomplished the incredible feat that President Trump did at our Nation’s historic 250th birthday celebration, which included an incredible air show, a record-breaking fireworks display, and an inspiring speech delivered before hundreds of thousands of American patriots,” White House Spokesperson Davis Ingle said in a statement.
Ingle said the day would “stand as one of the most historic celebrations” of America in history.
The Washington Post was the first to confirm the new record.
The company that provided the fireworks, Pyrotecnico Inc., said in a news release that it detonated the massive trove of fireworks within 40 minutes.
A spokesperson for Pyrotecnico Inc. told the Washington Post the company detonated around “21,250 pyrotechnics per minute.”
Freedom 250 also worked with Event Strategies Inc., a Washington, D.C.-based event group that often produces conservative groups’ events, for the fireworks show.
Trump’s Fourth of July fireworks show faced several hurdles this year due to extreme weather. Not only was it one of the hottest days of the year thus far, but heavy rain and thunderstorms delayed the fireworks by several hours.
Following the fireworks show, the air quality in D.C. reached unhealthy levels as pollution from the pyrotechnics clung in the city’s humid air for nearly 12 hours. AirNow, a website maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency, reported levels reaching “unhealthy.”
Another air monitoring group, Clarity Movement, reported that fine particulate matter levels were past 2.5, the New York Times reported.
Those levels mean the poor air quality can impact anyone, not just those in “sensitive groups.”
But Trump had promised a large fireworks show in addition to massive celebrations to mark the 250th anniversary. Freedom 250, the group established by the Trump administration – separate from the congressionally established America 250 commission – produced dozens of events around the country to mark the milestone.
That includes an Ultimate Fighting Championship cage match on the White House lawn, which coincided with Trump’s birthday, a massive 50-state fair in D.C., which did not feature a booth from each state, and a concert, which was later canceled because too many artists pulled out.