Local firework vendors expect weekend rush for Fourth of July

Elara Richardson, 4½, loads fireworks nearly as big as she is into her dad’s basket at Bellino Fireworks on Sunday. She and her father, Clay Richardson of Wauneta, shopped for fireworks ahead of the holiday. Elara said she likes the ones that “blow up.” Clay said he was buying smaller fireworks for daytime after purchasing larger fireworks for nighttime earlier.

Lorri Sughroue - McCook Gazette

McCOOK, Neb. — Fireworks retailers in McCook expect business to explode heading into the Fourth of July weekend after a slow start to the selling season.

Seasonal stands opened Sunday, the first day fireworks could legally be sold in McCook. By Wednesday, operators said customer traffic remained light but expected Friday and Saturday to bring their busiest sales of the season.

“It’s always slow in the beginning,” said Phil Pate, who is helping his daughter, Julie Shotkoski and his grandchildren operate the Shotkoski Fireworks stand in the Westview Plaza parking lot. “The hotter it gets, the slower it gets.”

With July Fourth this year landing on Saturday, Pate said that should bring more customers.

“Paychecks coming out on Friday will help,” he said.

Bottle rockets, which are legal again in Nebraska, and the “Grand Finale,” a package of three fused 500-gram cakes that ignite simultaneously, have been the most popular items at Shotkoski Fireworks.

“It’s a real showstopper,” Julie Shotkoski said. A McCook native, she’s operated the stand with her two daughters for the past four years. The family also sells fireworks in Lexington.

“We’re just a fireworks family,” said her daughter, Liviana Schneider. “We like coming here because we get to hang out with our grandparents.”

Renelle Mooney, manager of the Half Price Fireworks stand in the Pizza Hut parking lot, also expects sales to peak Friday and Saturday. The stand has been operated by Peace Lutheran Church for 30 years, with proceeds supporting the church’s youth program. Among the stand’s hundreds of products, artillery shells and the new Minion fountains have been the top sellers.

Retailers also said this year’s Fourth of July celebration, which falls during the nation’s 250th anniversary year, could provide an additional boost to sales. “I think it will help the economy overall,” said Mooney.

At Big Dawg Fireworks on West Ninth Street, customers are buying the largest, most colorful and loudest fireworks possible, said Jim Brandt. A portion of the proceeds benefits the McCook Optimist Club.

Karrie O’Brien, working at the Bellino Fireworks along U.S. Highway 83, cited that artillery shells and the “Buy 1, Get 3 Free” assortments have generated the strongest sales. O’Brien said traffic on opening day was slow but steady and expects business to increase as Independence Day approaches. A portion of the proceeds supports the For Dancers Only dance studio.

Consumer fireworks remain especially popular in small towns, where fewer local restrictions and a tradition of backyard Fourth of July celebrations contribute to demand, according to Value Penguin, a personal finance research website.

South Dakota imported more fireworks per resident than any other state in 2025, purchasing $11.4 million worth or $12.37 per resident, according to Value Penguin. Missouri ranked second, followed by Kansas, Alabama and Nebraska coming in at fifth, importing $9.6 million in fireworks, or $4.78 per resident.

Nebraska law allows the retail sale of only 1.4G consumer fireworks containing less than 500 milligrams of explosive composition. This means fireworks known as M-80s or cherry bombs are prohibited. Other unapproved fireworks are wire sparklers and sky lanterns.

In McCook, fireworks are allowed from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. through Thursday. On Friday, July 3 and Saturday, July 4, fireworks are allowed from 8 a.m. to 12 midnight.