Unfurling surprises of light and sound, sample fireworks, the first round of fireworks of the Thrissur Pooram, spread colours on the skies of Thrissur city on Friday night.
Excitement was palpable as a mix of sparkles, palm-leaf crackers, ‘gundu’ and ‘amittu’ created attractive patterns in the sky.
A record crowd witnessed the sample ‘vedikkettu’, giving an indication of the huge attendance that can be expected for the Thrissur Pooram this year. Rain clouds, which caused much apprehensions in the past days, however, kept off the skiess, much to the relief of pooram enthusiasts.
The Thiruvambadi Devaswom started the fireworks first by 7.30 p.m., followed by the Paramekkavu Devaswom. The fireworks were displayed by adhering to the guidelines issued by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO). Most of the fireworks were low in decibel and bright in colour. A mandatory 100-m distance was kept between the fire line and the audience.
Both the devaswoms displayed many innovative fireworks this time. Experiments were done more in ‘amittu’ (aerial fireworks) which burst in multi-colours in the sky. Named Vande Bharat, K-Rail, silver fish, red leaves, flash flash and so on, the varieties were plenty.
The police had made appropriate arrangements for the safety of the public. People were allowed into Swaraj Round only in a few areas. All the 16 sub-roads were under the police control. In all, about 950 police personnel were deployed in the city.
The police and the fire and rescues personnel were deployed at all strategic points. The police advised the public against entering dilapidated buildings in the city to watch the fireworks.
While Mundathikode Satheesh was the pyrotechnician for the Thiruvambadi Devaswom, P.C. Varghese prepared the fireworks for Paramekkavu. Both the devaswoms had received permission to use 2,000 kg of explosives.
