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A bigger and better Eggstravaganza

When all was said and done, the second annual Easter Eggstravaganza outdid the hype and delivered a memorable day for the community of Rankin Inlet on March 31.

Somewhere between 300 and 400 kids enjoyed the egg hunt and an early afternoon of hotdogs, hot chocolate, and toasted marshmallows.

Volunter firefighters, from left, Kyle Lowe, Obadiah Sanguin, Cody Tulugak, Kelly Kabvitok and Nathaniel Hutchinson prepare the canisters that will launch the fireworks high into the sky over Williamson Lake in Rankin Inlet on March 31, 2018. photo courtesy of Mark Wyatt

The festivities came to an end with a bang at 10 p.m. with a completely dazzling fireworks display that sent everyone home with a smile of their face and a little extra warmth in their heart.

Fire Chief Mark Wyatt said the department spent about $5,000 on the second annual Easter Eggstravaganza.

He said the money spent on the celebration is an investment of good will between the community and the department.

"We do an awful lot in terms of raising money within the community, and our community is very supportive when we're doing fundraising events like our bingo games, galas and raffles," said Wyatt.

"We raised a fair amount of money in Rankin Inlet for things we needed within the department.

"We bought a side-by-side this year, which we're road-fitting for rescue and tundra fires.

"We also bought a Jaws of Life this year, and we're looking at an extension to the fire hall, as well as building the garage out front."

Wyatt said every purchase and improvement is being paid for by money the department raises in the community.

He said department members doing events for the community is basically their way of showing appreciation for what people do for them.

"Sometimes, for us to just volunteer our time and do things that puts smiles on kids faces – and things that otherwise wouldn't happen in this community – is, I would have to say, a win-win situation for everyone, especially the kids.

Fireworks light up the evening sky over Williamson Lake to officially bring the second annual Easter Eggstravaganza to a close on a high note in Rankin Inlet on March 31, 2018. photo courtesy of Mark Wyatt

"We have, probably, the largest group of volunteers in town and we have the ability sometimes to be able to do stuff for the community and that's why we do it."

Wyatt said he estimates that somewhere in the neighbourhood of 400 kids, minimum, came out for the Eggstravaganza.

He said the department also gave away at least 400 hotdogs during the event.

"The hotdogs were really popular, and one of the things that worked out really well was having the bonfire and giving kids the opportunity to roast their own hotdog and marshmallow.

"That was quite popular, as well."

Wyatt said he was made aware that some concerns were raised over fireworks not being appropriate for use during a religious holiday.

He said as far as he was concerned personally, all he heard were positive comments on the show.

"There were no comments raised directly to me, apart from positive feeding being expressed on the quality of the show.

"There's always going to be people who are negative about certain things and I won't even address that."

Wyatt said in rating the Christmas show and the Easter show from the perspective of a trained professional, he'd say the Easter show was a bit better.

He said they had some different affects this time out and they made a difference.

"Apart from me, Christmas time was everybody's first fireworks show.

"This time we experimented and, rather than lighting every one individually, we tied each set of fireworks together that were in the mortar, so, you were lighting one fuse and letting off 10 shells.

"That made everything a lot smoother and a little bit safer, as well, for the people who were firing them.

"Every show we do we're going to make it a little bit better, so the next one we do is going to be better than this one and we'll just continue from there."