Patriotic Coloradoans will be able to celebrate Independence Day with a bang Tuesday, when several communities and the Ute Mountain Casino all sponsor fireworks shows.

Cortez Fair Association officials have announced that everything is ready for the "best ever" Cortez fireworks display, which will begin at dusk July 4.

This will be the largest fireworks display ever shown in Cortez. Larger aerial shells are on hand, including some developed for Disneyland and Disney World. A special group called "Geometry in the Sky" will be included. These shells will form circles, hearts and other shapes. Some ground fountain displays have been replaced with 300/400 simultaneous-shot aerials.

Association officials suggest that people arrive early to avoid traffic jams. Other than the lot on the north side of Parque de Vida, with access from Empire Street, parking lots within the park will be closed for safety reasons. The lot near the duck pond will be reserved for elderly and handicapped persons, who may drive to the intersection of Mildred Road and Montezuma Avenue and will be passed through the barriers directly to the special parking lot.

The public is welcome to sit anywhere in Centennial Park (west of Mildred). However, the only area in Parque de Vida available for seating will be north of the tennis courts and parking lot. All other areas of Parque de Vida, including the soccer fields, will be closed. Law-enforcement officers will enforce those restrictions.

Cold beverages and food will be available from concession stands operated by local youth groups. No alcoholic beverages or personal fireworks will be allowed. Such items will be confiscated and those possessing them will be asked to leave the park.

This fireworks display is financed entirely by the business people of Cortez and Montezuma County. The names of those providing financial support are listed in an advertisement in today’s Cortez Journal. Supporting businesses also display a fireworks poster.

Bill Hutchison, treasurer of the Cortez Fair Association, said that without the generous support of area businesses, the fireworks display would not be possible. The Cortez Rotary Club performs most of the work raising money and putting on the display. This is the 40th year that the club has provided fireworks for the community.

The Southwest Life Guard helicopter is scheduled to land in or near City Park Tuesday evening and make a fly-by just prior to the fireworks show. The helicopter furnishes emergency transportation services for Southwest Memorial Hospital and others in the Cortez area. Tuesday’s appearance depends upon availability of the helicopter and its crew.

The Ute Mountain Casino will host fireworks Tuesday evening as the final event in its second annual Independence Day Blast. Events and music will begin Saturday at 4 p.m.; the fireworks will start at dusk on Tuesday.

Fireworks will also begin at approximately 9 p.m. in Mancos, preceded at 8 p.m. by a tribute to the Mancos Veterans of Foreign Wars post. Dove Creek and Telluride both have fireworks at dark.

Dolores will hold its annual fireworks display on July 8 this year as part of its centennial celebration.

The organized fireworks displays will be the only fireworks allowed by law this year.

Montezuma County’s recently reinstated fire ban prohibits the personal use of all fireworks, including sparklers, snakes and ground displays. Although the sale and possession of non-explosive fireworks remain legal, anyone caught igniting them faces a misdemeanor charge and a fine.

The county fire ban, in tandem with fire restrictions on all federal public lands, prohibits open fires of any sort, including trash fires and campfires. The public-lands ban includes charcoal broilers and wood- or coal-burning stoves, smoking outside of buildings and vehicles, welding, explosives and the use of all chainsaws.

Violators risk fines. For more information about the public-lands fire ban, call 247-4874. To report a wildfire on public lands, call the Durango Interagency Fire Dispatch Center at 385-1324.

The Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office and the Colorado State Patrol plan increased coverage during the holiday weekend, as part of an anti-DUI campaign called "The Heat is On." During 1999, 190 people died in alcohol-related crashes in Colorado. Twenty-six of those deaths occurred in July, which was the worst month in 1999 for such deaths.