Safety measures set for Pittsburgh’s Fourth of July celebration

PITTSBURGH — Final safety preparations are in place for the City of Pittsburgh’s annual Independence Day celebration Friday.

Public safety officials say the North Shore Riverfront Park will be the event’s central hub, featuring food and family-friendly activities from 4-10 p.m. There will be more entertainment at the Grandview Park Band Stand.

Officials announced safety measures for the event, including a lost children’s space in the CitiParks information tent, near the NFL countdown clock.

Security will conduct light back checks at three designated entrances to the park.

The North Shore event space will close to new entrants at 9 p.m. or when crowds reach capacity, officials say.

Fireworks are scheduled to begin at 9:35 p.m. If you can’t see the display in person, you can watch them live exclusively on WPXI, both on Channel 11 and in our WPXI Now streaming apps and on WPXI.com.

>>> Watch the City of Pittsburgh Independence Day fireworks exclusively on Channel 11 <<<

Due to ongoing construction, there will be no events, mooring, parking or viewing at Point State Park, officials say. The park will be fully closed to all access Friday at 4 p.m. The park’s parking concession is closed for the duration of the project.

Officials encourage people to view fireworks safely from other locations with a clear view of the skyline, including the Roberto Clemente/Sixth Street Bridge, Grandview Park, the West End Overlook, Mount Washington Overlook and the North Shore River Trail.

Traffic Impacts

These North Shore roads will be closed to all incoming traffic except to the parking lots and garages on General Robinson until 7/8 p.m. or whenever they fill:

At 2:00 p.m.

• Casino Dr. at North Shore Dr.
• North Shore Dr. at Tony Dorsett Dr.
• Art Rooney Ave. at General Robinson St.
• Chuck Noll Way at General Robinson St./entrance to garages

At 7:00 p.m. (or whenever the garages fill):

• Tony Dorsett Dr. at General Robinson St.
• Mazeroski Way at General Robinson St.

At 8:00 p.m. (or whenever the garages fill):

• Casino Dr. at Sproat Way
• Allegheny Ave. at Reedsdale St.
• Art Rooney Ave. at Reedsdale St.
• Tony Dorsett Dr. at Reedsdale St.
• Mazeroski Way at Reedsdale St.

Mount Washington Closures:

Starting at 3:00 p.m.

• Shiloh St. at Grandview Ave. to Beam Way

Starting at 6:00 p.m. (or as traffic necessitates)

• Grandview Ave. at Wyoming St.
• Grandview Ave. at Merrimac St.
• PJ McArdle Roadway from Liberty Bridge

Additional Closures:

• The Roberto Clemente/Sixth Street Bridge will be closed to all vehicular traffic from 8:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., this includes a closure of Federal St. at General Robinson St. that also begins at 8:00 p.m.
• The majority of the roads will immediately reopen at the conclusion of the fireworks at 10:00 p.m.

First Responders

Pittsburgh police, as well as county and state partners, will provide security on the North Shore.

Public safety crossing guards will help pedestrians cross key intersections.

Pittsburgh medics will be stationed on the North Shore and Mount Washington, with bicycle and motorcycle units throughout.

Rescue boats and the fire boat will patrol the waters, with signs posted to prohibit mooring around the North Shore event space.

The Pittsburgh fire inspector will oversee the main fireworks display.

Pittsburgh’s Fireworks Task Force has been activated through July 5 to respond to fireworks-related calls and complaints. Misuse and/or illegal use of fireworks can result in warnings, citations, arrests and confiscation of fireworks, officials note.

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