advertisement

bastille day fireworks show planned for tuesday night in ottawa

red fireworks near the library of parliament building.
unexpected fireworks near parliament on july 9, 2026. submitted
the french embassy is planning to hold a bastille day fireworks show over the city tuesday night.
the fireworks are scheduled for about 9:30 p.m. over the ottawa river as part of the embassy’s bastille day reception at the french residence on sussex drive. the display is expected to be visible from rideau falls park and jacques cartier park.
the spectacle is scheduled to begin about 90 minutes earlier than the july 9 surprise fireworks show, when unused canada day fireworks were launched over lebreton flats at about 11 p.m. following the opening night of bluesfest.
that surprise display drew criticism from nearby residents and city councillors, who said they were caught off guard by the late-night show.
on monday, ottawa’s general manager of emergency and protective services, ryan perrault, apologized after the city received complaints, saying officials recognized the surprise display had an impact on nearby residents and would review their processes.
tuesday’s fireworks may have to contend with the weather, as environment canada issued a severe thunderstorm watch for tuesday evening, warning that storms capable of producing wind gusts of 90 to 110 km/h and hail could develop.
the bastille day reception is sold out and limited to registered guests.
our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark our homepage and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed.
michael mcbean
michael mcbean

michael mcbean is a summer general assignment reporter at the ottawa citizen. he is entering his fourth-year of carleton university’s journalism program and is the new editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, the charlatan. he recently completed an internship with cbc news’ world report. off the clock, mcbean enjoys exploring the glebe, supporting the cfl and energizing carleton ravens crowds as a public address announcer.

read more about the author

comments

postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. we ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. we have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. visit our community guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.