Brain Goes Behind The Scenes Of Freedom Festival Fireworks [PHOTOS]

As my family drove home from downtown Cedar Rapids last night I couldn't help but wonder how many people driving home know how much work went into what they just watched. Last week I talked on the air about my love of fireworks, and how I'd shoot them off all the time if they were legal in Iowa. My words were heard loud and clear by several employees of J&M Displays and they invited me down to see how the big boys do it!

The First Avenue bridge was the location for the Freedom Festival fireworks display. That's where I found J&M setting things up on Monday morning. The setup actually began the previous night. All the cannons were in place and now the fireworks were being wired and readied for the show.

Each individual firework that you saw explode in the sky Monday night is wired up just like these. That's over 5500 if you're counting at home. It's a time-consuming and dangerous process. They told me that while I was sitting down and observing that I shouldn't put anything over the cannons that I couldn't afford to lose. Message received.

The wiring and prep work would continue right into the afternoon and early evening. Then it was testing, making sure the music signal was strong and waiting for sundown! Once the display was over, the cleanup and breakdown began! A big thanks to Paul Meyers and J&M Displays for the outstanding fireworks display and also for letting get a peak of what goes on behind the scenes!