Frustrated New Yorkers speak out against Macy's week-long surprise Fourth of July shows after enduring weeks of nightly illegal fireworks across the city

• Macy's announced earlier this week it would conduct a week-long series of five-minute firework shows around New York City featuring its "signature pyrotechnic scale with thousands of shells reaching heights up to 1,000 feet." The firework shows began on Monday.
• The location of the shows has been announced shortly in advance as part of an effort to avoid crowding and promote social distancing while still celebrating the Fourth of July.
• However, many New Yorkers — who have already endured weeks of illegal fireworks around the city — aren't so keen about the displays and took to social media to air their grievances.
• In a statement to Business Insider, a Macy's spokesperson acknowledged the outcry over illegal fireworks in the city and said the company's goal is "to bring this cherished annual event to New Yorkers and the nation" and do so in "the safest way possible."

When Macy's announced a spate of fireworks shows that "will launch unannounced on select evenings across New York City", many city dwellers were less than pleased about the surprise explosions when they began on Monday evening.

As the department store prepares for the third night of its week-long performance, New Yorkers are taking to social media to express frustration after weeks of enduring a rash of illegal fireworks around the city. In Manhattan alone, there were 12,500 police complaints regarding fireworks in June — about 12 times the number in 2019, according to The New York Times. The incessant explosions have led Mayor Bill de Blasio to convene a task force to snuff out the nightly interruptions.

For Macy's, the series of short shows are intended to serve as a modified version of the department store's annual Fourth of July fireworks show, allowing members of the city's five boroughs to view fireworks while adhering to social distancing protocols.

"Each 5-minute display will feature Macy's signature pyrotechnic scale with thousands of shells reaching heights up to 1,000 feet," Macy's wrote on its website. "Each show is brief and will be over before residents can gather at its source. The displays will be launched from one or two land or water-based locations over the course of the week-long celebration covering every borough of New York City."

Macy's has been announcing the location of the nightly fireworks shows shortly in advance of their start to avoid crowding. However, the clandestine nature of the operation is exacerbating the anxiety of many New Yorkers, many of which are already functioning on rattled nerves amid a pandemic.

In a statement to Business Insider, a Macy's spokesperson acknowledged the outcry over illegal fireworks in the city and said the company's goal is "to bring this cherished annual event to New Yorkers and the nation" and do so in "the safest way possible."

"We understand the concern over the recent illegal fireworks displays. And we are committed to delivering our fireworks in a way that New Yorkers will enjoy and that is safe," a Macy's spokesperson said in a statement to Business Insider.

Still, several people took to Twitter in the past week to sound off about the displays, calling them "inappropriate" and insensitive to New Yorkers who have been "sleep deprived and traumatized by fireworks for weeks on end":

Others pointed out that it seemed like a large expenditure for Macy's after the department store recently slashed nearly 4,000 jobs amid the coronavirus outbreak:

Regardless, the Macy's spokesperson said that much like the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the fireworks are a longstanding tradition and the show must go on.

"Macy's 4th of July Fireworks have been a New York City tradition for more than 40 years and are produced with one of the most experienced pyrotechnic companies in the world," the Macy's spokesperson told Business Insider. "Macy's is at the center of celebration, and our fireworks, much like the parade, are one of the ways that we help Americans celebrate the milestones in their lives."