'We were stretched thin:' Fireworks company apologizes for shows being duds

APOPKA, Fla. – The owner of Creative Pyrotechnics, the company responsible for four fireworks fails across the state, apologized Friday, saying a combination of weather woes and short-staffing contributed to cancellation of the shows.

Fourth of July revelers in Apopka, DeBary, St. Petersburg and Gulfport went home without a fireworks show Wednesday after officials say Creative Pyrotechnics failed to deliver.

"We greatly apologize for coming out and not having a show to see," owner E.J. Weppel said in a phone interview. "It's very disappointing, obviously we've had a good track record for the last 10 plus years and we want to do our best to make it up and make it right for everyone."

Weppel said in an attempt to make up for it he'll be offering a free fireworks show for Labor Day to the cities affected. His company made it up to the city of Gulfport by putting on a show Thursday night. He said the city of St. Petersburg denied his offer. 

Weppel said he will be offering not only a free Labor Day show for the city of Apopka but he will also be giving the city back its $24,500 for the fireworks fail. He said the show did not go off in Apopka because of bad weather.

"There was a lot storms that were there in the beginning of the day until about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, so the crew was wiring as fast as possible and when it came down to it, they needed about an hour delay," Weppel said. 

He said that this Fourth of July was the busiest for his company, which put on 10 shows across the state with a staff of about 50. 

"We were definitely stretched thin, I can say that much," Weppel said.

As for DeBary, Weppel said he'd be offering a free Labor Day show but not offering a full refund. He said the area where the city told him to set up his fireworks was flooded out and those fireworks were lost. Weppel posted pictures of those fireworks with an explanation on Facebook Friday.

"The other reason why we posted the information about DeBary was so that people can understand why that show did not happen as it was unsafe to actually set up the mortars in standing water," Weppel said.

DeBary City Manager Ron McLemore told News 6 Thursday he would not provide any further statement pending possible litigation but wrote a letter to residents in which he said he's going to ask the city for a full investigation into the company's failure.
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"I cannot express to you sufficiently the level of your City officials’ disappointment over the huge impacts this failure had on what we fully believed would have otherwise been the largest and most successful event the City has ever attempted to provide celebrating the combined birthday of our country and 25th birthday of our city," McLemore said in a post on the city's website. 

The Apopka Police Department said in a press release Friday that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is investigating the company after detectives found the fireworks meant for Wednesday's show were left at the Apopka Amphitheater overnight. 

Weppel said he knows about the investigation and said he was put in a tight situation. 

"It was a Catch-22," he said.

Weppel said the employee he had in charge of shooting off the fireworks in Apopka did not have the proper Department of Transportation hazmat license he needed to transport the fireworks so he had to leave them there.

Apopka Mayor Bryan Nelson said he hopes for the full refund, but does not plan on using Creative Pyrotechnics next year.

"Boy, I tell ya it would be hard-pressed to say they would be at the top of my list for a pyrotechnics shows," Nelson said.

Creative Pyrotechnics was in charge of putting on the firework show in the city of Winter Springs. The Park and Recreational director said that show went off perfectly and they will be using Creative Pyrotechnics again.