People flock to downtown Ho Chi Minh City to watch fireworks

Many people flocked to Bach Dang wharf park, Thu Thiem urban area, waiting for more than two hours to watch fireworks on the evening of April 30.

People flock to Bach Dang Park, District 1 to watch fireworks. Photo: Dinh Van

From 6:30 p.m., motorbikes and cars poured onto Ton Duc Thang, Le Duan, Dong Khoi streets... with increasing numbers. The traffic jammed the lanes, forcing motorbikes to drive onto the sidewalks or squeeze between the gaps between cars to find a way out.

At Bach Dang wharf park, many families brought tarps, raincoats, and food to spread out on the grass to eat and drink while waiting until 9 p.m. to enjoy the fireworks from the Saigon River and the barges on the river. Meanwhile, parking lots on neighboring roads were also full early. Many people had to park their cars a kilometer away to walk to the fireworks viewing spot.

Bringing food to Bach Dang Park with her husband and two children at 6:30 p.m., Ms. Thanh Huong, 35 years old, said that because she was worried about traffic jams and running out of parking spaces, she left early to wait for more time. "This year, my family is not going on vacation, so I let my children watch fireworks to have fun on the holiday," Ms. Huong said.

People flocked to the Ba Son bridge area connecting District 1 and Thu Duc City to watch fireworks. Photo: Quynh Tran

At the city’s famous fireworks viewing spot, Thu Thiem Urban Area, many roads were already crowded with traffic since the afternoon. On To Huu Street, long lines of cars inched forward, most of them heading towards the riverbank. The parking lot next to Saigon River Park was also packed, with vehicles waiting nearly 20 minutes for a parking space.

Currently, this is the only parking lot serving people watching fireworks, so it is overloaded from 6 p.m. To maintain order, hundreds of police, militia, and civil defense forces have to take turns on duty on the roads to direct traffic and guide people to the fireworks viewing area.

Saigon River Park in Thu Duc City was crowded before the fireworks display. Photo: Quynh Tran

To celebrate the 49th anniversary of the country's reunification, Ho Chi Minh City will organize 5 fireworks displays from 9:00 p.m. to 9:15 p.m. One high-altitude display will be at the beginning of the Saigon River tunnel in Thu Thiem Ward, Thu Duc City. Four low-altitude displays will be at Thao Dien Villa Area (on a barge) and Van Phuc Urban Area (Thu Duc City) and two at Lot N4-D6 of the Northwest Industrial Park (Cu Chi District) and Dam Sen Cultural Park (District 11). On the occasion of April 30 this year, civil servants, public employees and workers will have 5 days off, from April 27 to May 1. During the long holiday, many families in the city plan to return to their hometowns and travel, causing congestion at the gateways before and during the holiday. This afternoon, many people returned to the city one day earlier than the scheduled time.

Dinh Van - Quynh Tran

Vnexpress.net

Source: https://vnexpress.net/nguoi-dan-do-ve-trung-tam-tp-hcm-xem-phao-hoa-4740573.html