Family-owned company prepares to put on the largest fireworks display in history [View all]

Source: CBS News

July 3, 2026 / 8:49 PM EDT


Washington — There are fireworks, and then there's what's in store for Saturday in Washington, D.C. When the sun goes down on Independence Day, the skies of Washington are expected to fill with a record-setting 850,000 individual fireworks for a 40-minute spectacle like no one has seen before.

A company called Pyrotecnico will attempt the biggest fireworks show in history, using five generations of family know-how and a background in Super Bowls and large musical acts to help America celebrate its 250th birthday with a bang.

"I mean, it is the biggest show that we've done," Rocco Vitale, president of Pyrotecnico, told CBS News. "...My earliest memories of fireworks displays and doing the Fourth of July was here."

Pyrotecnico has been planning this year's show since January, using computers to simulate the display. But now it's time for the real thing. Vitale gave CBS News an exclusive look at his not-so-secret weapons: eight barges out on the Potomac River, each one ready to light up the night sky.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/company-to-put-on-largest-fireworks-display-in-history-july-4-pyrotecnico/

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Full headline - Family-owned company prepares to put on the largest fireworks display in history: "It is the biggest show that we've ever done"


When I was checking the Washington Monument Webcam yesterday, I saw the barges all lined up and knew exactly what they were for.