For decades, community members have enjoyed spectacular fireworks celebrating the nation’s birthday at Joint Force Training Base Los Alamitos. But this year, the base will be closed to the public and the show livestreamed.
On Monday, Los Alamitos city and military officials decided to close the base to the public for the fireworks show on July 3 due to “ongoing military operations” in connection with the deployment of Army National Guard in the Los Angeles area and Orange County in response to protests over immigration enforcement raids and to support federal personnel.
“They have active exercises on the base and their mission is to train military, so their mission takes precedence over everything else,” Los Alamitos Mayor Shelley Hasselbrink said on Tuesday, June 24.
Lt. Col. Dan Fox, the base commander, said he had held off canceling public access for as long as possible, but decided on Monday that logistical and security concerns associated with the expected large crowds and traffic weren’t a good fit for the present mission.
“Because of the increased number of troops training on the base, it is a logistical problem to bring on approximately 7,000 cars and 15,000 people to watch the fireworks,” he said, adding that with only two roads on to and off of the base and that many people there it would make it very difficult for the troops to respoond should they be called on missions. “For operational security and general safety of our base, having those cars and people in such a logistical confined area, we have a safety problem and a logistical problem.”
Since June 8, when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called up National Guard troops, the base has been used as a staging and training ground. Presently, 4,100 National Guard troops are in Southern California; some are at the base. Another 700 Marines are staging at the Naval Weapons Station Seal Beach; all are under the command of Gen. Scott Sherman, as Task Force 51.
The fireworks show at the base, a nearly 40-year-old tradition, has been a joint effort between the military and the cities of Los Alamitos and Seal Beach. The 23-minute show is put on by a pyrotechnic company hired by the city of Los Alamitos. During the coronavirus pandemic it was turned into a drive-up event.
So, this year’s show, planned for July 3, starting at 9 p.m., will be made available through a livestream app on Los Alamitos’ social platforms.
The fireworks will still be shot off at the base and Hasselbrink said many in the neighborhoods surrounding the base should be able to see them from their yards and porches.
“Not everyone comes to the base,” she said. “I can see it from my own yard.”