Geraldton’s Australia Day celebrations end with a bang thanks to Europcar fireworks show

Most of the community were out of the house and perched along Geraldton Foreshore on Thursday night in anticipation for the big bang to sign off the City’s 2023 Australia Day celebrations. As has become apparent in recent years, Australia Day proved to be a divisive day over the change-the-day debate but that did not stop thousands of people from flocking to celebrations. City of Greater Geraldton Mayor Shane Van Styn estimated 15,000 people had ventured down to the foreshore at some stage during the day or night, while at its peak the celebrations had attracted 12,000. He said it was Geraldton’s biggest Australia Day crowd in five years. The foreshore was lined with picnic blankets topped with families, friends and loved ones taking advantage of the calm weather. The fireworks show, this year sponsored by Europcar, was bigger and better than last year with an array of different styles and colours blanketing the sky. Types included comets, brocade crowns, mines, falling leaves and whirlwinds, before the show finished up and most folk went on their way to hit the hay before their Friday shift. Traffic was banked up along Stella Maris Drive from 8.30pm-9pm as thousands of people attempted to get home.