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Pyrotechnician shortage moves Yucca Valley fireworks show to July 3rd

Jef Harmatz Jef Harmatz Send an email May 13, 2026

The Town of Yucca Valley announced that their annual Independence Day Fireworks display will be happening a day earlier this year.

Clayton Rardon, Supervisor with the Town’s Parks and Recreation Department, announced that the fireworks show will be held on July 3. Typically held  on July 4 at Brehm’s Sports Park, the event will also switch locations due to the ongoing construction of the Aquatics Center.

Rardon made the announcement on a recent episode of the Z107.7 Up Close Show with host Gary Daigneault.

“With the construction for the new Aquatics and Recreation Center at Brehm Park over by Tri-Valley, Little League, and the Boys and Girls Club, we’ve lost a lot of parking and there are just a lot of other like challenges with that site during the construction. We made arrangements with Morongo Unified School District to hold the event at Yucca Valley High School’s stadium, which is historically where the fireworks were shot for a very long time. 

So we’re back at the stadium for one more summer and the contractor that we used for the fireworks didn’t have a pyrotechnician for July 4 to come out to Yucca Valley, so we’re going to be doing the show on July 3 this year. There is a national shortage of pyrotechnicians. It’s a big challenge, especially in such a population-dense location like SoCal.”

Rardon confirmed that the Town would continue to use PyroSpectaculars as the fireworks contractor. In 2025, the Town of Yucca Valley’s July 4 fireworks show was delayed by several hours and significantly shortened. The Town said they were “deeply disappointed” with last year’s event, but continue to work with PyroSpectaculars to ensure that the show would have a successful return in 2026.

Previously reported:

Yucca Valley July 4th fireworks fail to launch
Jef Harmatz Jef Harmatz Send an email May 13, 2026
Jef Harmatz

Jef Harmatz

Jef Harmatz is the co-host of Z107.7’s “Morning Show with Cody and Jef” and Z107.7’s News Director. He has worked as a journalist, cartoonist, chef, and delivery driver. He is known nationally for his writing and comics in publications like TimeOut, Popula, Roadtrippers, Solrad and Spiralbound, and for his album covers for Third Eye Blind and Sir Sly. He is known locally for his pop-up barbecue restaurant Hot Dog Panic. He remains unknown in the field of beekeeping, because he is too afraid of being stung to try it. When not on the radio, he draws comics and self-publishes little books. He lives with his partner and his dog Sunday in Yucca Valley, where he cooks them both elaborate meals.