Noxon fireworks trailer destroyed in post-Fourth blaze

You can see it in his eyes, even though he tries to suppress the hurt.

“It isn’t about me, but it does choke me up,” said Noxon resident and longtime fireworks director Larry Wanamaker as he pondered the fire that destroyed his cargo trailer early Wednesday morning.

Just hours earlier, Wanamaker and friends/crew had pulled off another grand fireworks display from the shores of the Clark Fork River as it flows past this picturesque town in northwest Sanders County.

“I get choked up when I think about what has happened,” he said. “This community loves the fireworks.”

Around 2 a.m. Wednesday, the Noxon Fire Department received two 911 calls of a fire along the riverfront, with one of the callers saying she thought she heard what sounded like an explosion jut before the flames erupted.

Those flames tore through a wood-decked trailer, along with a wooden “float” float on which it was built as part of the proximity to the river.

The fire burned fast and hot, melting the trailer’s tires and destroying the entire wood structure. Recently installed lift devices were also a total loss, leaving what Wanamaker estimated to be approximately $20,000 in damage.

As of Sunday evening no cause of the fire had been reported.

What made matters worse, Wanamaker had no insurance on the trailer. Initial attempts to set up a “Go Fund Me” page were rejected by the website because of what it said was their policy toward explosives.

“I’m not looking to recover the cost of the fireworks,” he said. “They were already gone after the show. This is all about the trailer.”

Almost.

Although he wouldn’t admit it, the incident hit Wanamaker hard. The good news is that after re-considering the situation, Go Fund Me reversed its initial stance and has since approved a fundraising page.

There is also a contribution vehicle in place through Valley Bank in Thompson Falls, with Wanamaker saying anyone who wants to help out can make a donation to the bank in care of the Noxon Senior Center.

The object of Wanamaker’s sorrow is not just the loss of his “goose neck” or fifth-wheel trailer. It is the thought that such a heartfelt effort into providing hundreds, if not thousands of people who congregate in Noxon each Independence Day, may be in jeopardy.

But Wanamaker is doing his best to shake off the hurt and move on to the next pyrotechnical performance.

“I’ve heard it said that people in cars line the highway (MT. 200) across the river to watch this show,” he said as his eyes swept over the ruins of what remains of his 20-foot trailer from which the arterial fireworks were launched. “I’ve seen the headlights of cars lining up the mountain roads across the river just to see the fireworks.”

Sometime after the show, which drew raves on social media, was over, a fire of unknown origin broke out on the trailer from which more than 400 pyrotechnic “mortar” and rocket devices had been launched. By all accounts it was another in a string of successful shows put on by Wanamaker and a small crew of volunteers who help make the fireworks a highly anticipated part of Noxon’s energetic Fourth of July celebration.

Earlier in the day, dozens of floats and entrants in the town’s annual Independence Day parade had filled the main route through town, which is accessible by a one-lane bridge that spans the Clark Fork River’s lower reaches.

“People in this community love the fireworks,” said Wanamaker’s long time companion Sue Ziese. “A lot of effort goes into making this happen. This just doesn’t make sense.”

Wanamaker and Ziese have been involved in the Noxon fireworks display for several years and both are certified pyrotechnic technologists.

“I’ve been the director of the fireworks for Noxon for the past eight years,” said Wanamaker, who retired eight years ago. “We checked those fireworks one half-hour after the show (to allow for cooling) and again an hour and a half later. We also put tape over the tops of the launch tubes so we can make sure a shell left the tube. We also checked that with a flashlight inspection and everything was out when we left.”

Wanamaker said he has used the trailer the past eight years to go over to Helena prior to the show and pick up his order of fireworks, which usually cost approximately $5,000 a year. Those costs, he said, are paid by donations of firework fans and local residents.

In addition to his fireworks stewardship, Wanamaker is also the parade’s emcee, keeping a lively audio description of the event for the hundreds of celebrants who crowd the town’s waterfront park.

“This hurts for sure,” he said. “But the people here are good people and I’m confident we will be able to get back on track together.”