Hundreds of people gathered on the Brooklyn waterfront hours in advance of the Fourth of July fireworks — while only wealthy VIPs were allowed at prime viewing spots on the Manhattan side.
Some revelers arrived at Brooklyn Bridge Park and the Brooklyn Heights Promenade at 10 a.m. or earlier to claim a space — baking in the sun for hours as they waited for the Macy’s pyrotechnics after sundown.
“We wanted to get a good view and made sure we had our spot locked down and everything,” said 39-year-old Crystal Arias, who drove from East New York with her two children.
“With the kids, it’s important they get a little shaded area,” she said, adding that she’d packed a cooler full of food and drinks to keep the little ones nourished “through the night, until the fireworks start.”
Irving Pluck, 29, from Queens said he was starting to “heat up” as temperatures approached 90 degrees Thursday.
“It’s burning up. But of course it’s going to be worth it,” he said.
Some folks were especially excited that the fireworks were launching near the Brooklyn Bridge for the first time since 2014 after spending the last four years uptown near the Queens-Midtown Tunnel.
“Whenever they’re over here they’re pretty spectacular,” said 49-year-old Ocean Hill resident Kenny Williams.
His pal, Bill Brown, 66, from Washington Heights added: “Seeing it from the promenade is kind of cool. The promenade authority is already laid back to begin with, so there’s not a lot of drama.”
Over at South Street Seaport in Manhattan, closest-to-the-action Piers 16 and 17 were closed off to anyone not holding a $492 ticket to a party at swanky restaurant The Fulton — or not cool enough to land on the VIP list for a party above Pier 17, as Gothamist first reported.
For everyone else, Macy’s recommended six prime viewing locations on elevated portions of the FDR Drive and the Lower Promenade.
Police said they wouldn’t be admitting revelers until 6 p.m. — though some people snuck in, including one woman who said she was getting on a ferry, and snagged a spot on the East River Esplanade with her kids instead.
“We’re still worried they’re going to kick us out,” said another woman, Lynn Cullens, 63, who slipped into the viewing spot at Water Street and Front Street at around noon.
The approximately 20-minute show was set to begin around 9:20 p.m.
Additional reporting by Ben Cohn and Kevin Fasick