New Year 2021: 8,500kg of fireworks lights up Ras Al Khaimah

Ras Al Khaimah, Jan 1: The Ras Al Khaimah New Year’s Eve Celebrations dazzled the world with a 10-minute fireworks show that underlined the UAE’s message of hope, peace and achievements.

Lighting up the sky over the Arabian Sea, 8,500kg of fireworks lit up a length of 4km and width of 3.9km. The festive panorama of colours was achieved from 81 launch pontoons that shot up 15,281 firework shells. The show took 20 days of offshore and onshore preparation with 30 technicians. More than 3km of optical fibre was laid in addition to 6km of control cables.

The #RasAlKhaimah sky is shimmering with illuminating fireworks to celebrate the beginning of 2021 ... Happy New Year to all! Watch the Livestream here:

Ras Al Khaimah New Year Fireworks https://t.co/ivmaCZOkHI via @YouTube

— Ras Al Khaimah Government Media Office (@RAKmediaoffice) December 31, 2020
The 10-minute show started with the rhythmic rendition of ‘Reaching for the Horizon,’ a special set-piece. The fireworks created a burst of red flares and golden meteor showers and culminated with the visual creation of an oasis of lights.

The next act was sober, a tribute to mankind for their resilience in the past year. It featured a golden rain with golden dunes and oases, illuminating the whole bay in bright pink and creating breathtaking waterfalls. The tune set was aptly titled ‘Fading Memories’.

Highlighting the achievements of UAE and Ras Al Khaimah, the next act was set to the melody of ‘The Impossible’ wherein waterfalls of gold and green enveloped the area creating 3D effects of moving fish. The colours became intense as it moved to the next act set to compelling violin notes as the sky lit up in white flashes and swirl effects, all created with fireworks.

The next act was in bright blue, as light effects created a continuous movement, before moving to the next act set to the music of Argonaut, as white light snakes twirled around the sky, before turning green. It reflected, as the name indicates, the journey of an adventurer.

The final act before the countdown was set to the music named ‘Meraki,’ a word from Greek used to denote soul, creativity and love. The display was highlighted by red and white colours, its rhythmic pace accelerating, as more colours were added with crackling effects and hanging white hues. And, with the countdown setting in, a great thunder and breathtaking display of colours followed to usher in the New Year.

The show was without public activities or viewing areas to ensure the safety of the residents. Only hotel guests, residents, ticket holders and diners had access to viewing areas at the hotels.