Seven thousand and five hundred people will get tickets to attend a Mt. Rushmore fireworks show. State officials also confirm President Donald Trump will attend the July event.
Tickets will be distributed through a lottery system over the next several days.
Governor Kristi Noem and state tourism officials say inviting 7,500 people from across the country to the fireworks show is a good way to celebrate. Especially after what they call the “rough patch” of the last several months.
The ticket lottery is on the federal website called Recreation.gov. It runs from Friday morning at 9 CT to Monday at midnight.
Applicants will be notified whether they get tickets.
Noem says there was a social distancing plan in the works, but organizers have abandoned that idea.
“What I’m going to ask people to continue to do is if you’re sick, stay home,” Noem says. “If you’re the vulnerable population and you’re worried about the virus, you should stay home. People will have all the information that they need to know exactly what it will look like at Mt. Rushmore, so they can make a decision for themselves if they’d like to attend or not.”
Tourism Secretary Jim Hagan says crowd will be split into two zones, one in the amphitheater, and the other in a gravel parking lot across from the memorial.
“For those who don’t have a direct view of the amphitheater, we are working now to provide jumbo screens and audio as well so they can actually see the program. Obviously, they’ll have a great shot of the fireworks, but we want them to be able to see the program as well.”
Last year, the state signed a memorandum of understanding with the federal government to explore bringing the fireworks back.
The National Park Service ended the shows more than a decade ago because of the fire danger. A chemical in the fireworks was also polluting local water, and debris from exploded fireworks shells littered the grounds.
