San Francisco celebrated the independence of our troubled nation Thursday by blowing up small parts of it—over and over again. The usual fog partly obscured the spectacular, city-sanctioned displays over the Bay, while in residential neighborhoods like the Mission District that were spared the marine layer, people just lit ’em off in the streets until midnight or later.
People record a friend doing it for the ’Gram. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Onlookers watch fireworks exploding on a residential street. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Illegal fireworks lit up the sidewalk in front of this Mission District storefront church. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
House parties and barbecues spilled into the streets, occasionally halting traffic at intersections like South Van Ness Avenue and 21st Street. There and elsewhere in the city, intrepid (or foolhardy) people scrambled away from honeycombed boxes of fountains and Roman candles that they’d just ignited with a cigarette lighter.
Although police dispersed crowds near Garfield Square, people kept coming back for more action. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
A woman waves to a police vehicle circulating through Mission, a sign of the neighborhood's defiant attitude. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
Sometimes fireworks halted vehicular traffic, sometimes not. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
Although not quite as polarizing as sideshows, fireworks certainly have their fans and detractors. Yes, they’re illegal and extremely dangerous (plus they set off car alarms and terrorize dogs, and some of us had to get up and go to work this morning). However, the threat of hefty fines and the occasional presence of San Francisco Police Department vehicles had little discernible effects beyond dispersing people for a few minutes at a time.
It was America’s birthday, and the city went hard.
A man ignites a firework while other fireworks explode around him near Garfield Square. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Tempting fate, one person holds a bottle rock while another person lit it. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Occasionally, fireworks can clear an entire intersection. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
A particularly big one went off on Harrison Street in the Mission. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Yes, the booms can be surprisingly loud. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
Onlookers point and record fireworks near Garfield Square. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Scenes like this played out until well after midnight across the fog-free Mission and elsewhere. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
Intrepid—or foolhardy—young people shoot them off every which way. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
It may not have been a three-day weekend, but crowds gathered late into the evening all the same. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Year after year, the Mission remains a focal point for illegal fireworks displays. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
A car drives through a particularly smoky moment. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
Onlookers gathered near Garfield Square in the Mission. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Fountains can be particularly dramatic types of fireworks. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
Police officers made their presence felt, blocking the corner of 25th and Harrison Streets to vehicles. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Teenagers react after setting off fireworks at the corner of Treat Avenue and 25th Street in the Mission. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Axel, Esparza, 15 covers his ears while watching illegal fireworks in the Mission District. | Source: Paul Kuroda for The Standard
A car did donuts at the intersection of 26th Street and Treat Avenue in the Mission District. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard
Pics, or it didn't happen. | Source: Aaron Levy-Wolins for The Standard