Cops: Take Public Transit To See Fireworks In L.I.C.

Revelers hoping to watch the New York sky light up with rockets red glare during Friday night's Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks display from points in Long Island City should take public transportation to get there, police advised.

The 108th Precinct announced that parking restrictions will be in effect along several streets in the Hunters Point section of the neighborhood in anticipation of the thousands of spectators expected to come and catch a glimpse of the Independence Day pyrotechnics.

Several roadways west of Second and Fifth streets will be closed entirely to vehicular traffic on Friday night, a law enforcement source said, to allow for police, fire or EMS vehicles access to the area in the event of an emergency.

According to information provided by the precinct, parking will be restricted on the following roadways this Friday:

• Second Street between 50th and 54th avenues;

• Fifth Street between 46th and Borden avenues;

• 47th Avenue between Fifth Street and Center Boulevard;

• 47th Road between Fifth Street and Center Boulevard.

• 48th, 49th and 50th avenues between Fifth Street and Center Boulevard;

• 51st Avenue between Second and Fifth streets;

• Borden Avenue between Second and 11th streets;

• Center Boulevard between 47th and 50th avenues; and,

• Vernon Boulevard between 46th and Borden avenues.

Those wishing to view the fireworks from Hunters Point are advised by police to take the 7 train to Vernon Boulevard- Jackson Avenue, then walk two blocks west on 50th Avenue to access the viewing area in the vicinity of Gantry State Park.

In past years, the annual fireworks display attracted crowds of as much as 40,000 to the Long Island City area, where viewers got especially close looks at the displays since one of the fireworks barges were anchored on the East River parallel to the local waterfront.

This year's display will be different, according to a Macy's spokesperson, as most of the fireworks will be set off from three barges anchored parallel to the Greenpoint and Williamsburg waterfronts.

Even so, the spokesperson indicated, "the explosions and effect" that will be created will be "wider and more tiered than ever before, expanding the viewing area" to include "any [point] in Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn with an unobstructed view of the sky over the East River between Houston Street and 42nd Street on the Manhattan side."

Illegal fireworks

In a related note, police advised all residents to avoid setting off fireworks on their own to celebrate America's independence, noting that the purchase and use of consumer fireworks in New York City is strictly prohibited.

Anyone who is caught by police with illegal fireworks is subject to arrest; any vehicle found by police to have been used to transport the pyrotechnics may also be seized. Business owners found selling fireworks may have their establishments shut down by police.

Anyone with any information regarding individuals suspected of delivering, selling or storing fireworks is asked to call 911 (if the crime is observed in progress) or the city's 311 hotline.

Whistle-blowers may be eligible of a reward from the NYPD of up to $1,000 for providing information that leads to the arrest and conviction of a suspect.