Penghu’s first fireworks display at their annual fireworks festival encountered strong winds, with more than 10 drones blown down during a One Piece performance.
The Penghu Firework Festival opened last night, ushering in the start of Penghu’s peak tourism season. This year was meant to be especially memorable with the addition of a One Piece-themed drone show celebrating the animation's 25th anniversary. However, while tourists gathered in large numbers, the weather had other ideas.
Strong winds almost canceled the 9 p.m. show, with an official announcement made that due to extreme weather, the show could not continue. Many disappointed fans had already left the venue when it was rescheduled nearly an hour later.
During the show, several drones were visibly blown away. Still others were recorded falling out of the sky mid-performance.
Nonetheless, many fans who left early were upset. Some stated they felt cheated for having listened to the original announcement canceling the show. Later, when it was announced that the show would still take place, heavy traffic on the roads made reaching the venue difficult, with some complaining of unsafe road conditions.
Event organizers announced after 8 p.m. that due to level 6 winds, the drone show would be canceled. Later at 9:27 it was announced they were running performance viability tests. The final message, sent out at 9:32, announced the show would go on beginning at 9:50 p.m. – after many fans had already left.
The Penghu director of tourism defended the delay, citing the strong weather conditions at 9 p.m. Even after the delay and performance check, more than ten drones were dropped.
Around 16,000 tourists attended the festival's grand opening, despite disruptions. The event will continue with 27 more fireworks shows, lasting into July. Weather permitting only tourists, not drones, will be blown away by the remaining shows.
