Dubai’s New Year’s Eve fireworks show was declared as a record-breaking on January 1, 2014. However, in order for it to be added to Guinness’ book of world records, it had to evaluated thoroughly. Now, when that process is finished, it is safe to say, that the emirate’s spectacle on NYE grabbed the title “Largest Fireworks Display.”
According to Guinness World Records, in only six minutes were fired nearly 480,000 firework shells. That means about 80,000 shells for every minute of the show. That resulted in approximately 1,330 fireworks per second.
The previous “Largest Fireworks Display” record belonged to Kuwait. The country organized a massive fireworks show back in 2011. This was when the Kuwait was marking the golden jubilee anniversary of its constitution. According to the Guinness World Records, the event included over 77,000 fireworks. Also, it estimated that the entire show cost the country about $15 million.
Although 77,000 fireworks is certainly an impressive number, Dubai’s 80,000 fireworks per minute managed to smash the old record in just 60 seconds. In contrast, it took Kuwait 64 minutes to launch its 77,282 fireworks.
As part of the show, the fireworks transformed into various images and shapes, like the flag of the United Arab Emirates and a flying falcon. The price of the whole spectacle was only $6 million or $9 million less than those which Kuwait invested to achieve the previous record. Still, many members of the public commented that the funds should have been directed towards charity.
It is reported that more than local 1,000 specialists took part in the preparation of the event. In addition to that, the emirate hired an addition 200 pyro-technicians from all over the world. To control the show, they used around a hundred computers. The entire installation of the shells and all the required equipment took over 5,000 hours. Nevertheless, the planning of the event took even longer – a total of 10 months. Also, the fireworks were launched from a large number of stations which covered a territory of more than 100 km. The music for the show included an 81-piece orchestra.
However, the best thing about the NYE show in Dubai was it was shared with the whole world. The fireworks record was live-streamed on YouTube in real time. This is a massive promotion for the city aimed at attracting more tourists.
Dubai is not new to the Guinness World Records. The city also holds the record for the world’s tallest hotel, tallest building in the world, highest swimming pool, tallest service elevator and many others. In addition, the UAE has nearly 150 records added to Guinness’ book. In comparison, the rest of the Middle East region has a total of 380. Therefore, it is not surprising that Dubai is the only Guinness World Records office in the entire Middle East.
