Police shot and killed a man outside St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in North Philadelphia on Thursday, authorities said.
Officers were called to the hospital shortly before 10:30 a.m. for a report by hospital staff of an “irate man,” said Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel.
At a briefing with the media Thursday evening, Bethel clarified that the man, whose name and age were not released, did not threaten anyone at the hospital.
“The hospital was at no time under threat,” Bethel said.
The man was at the hospital yesterday related to something involving a “child in the hospital,” Bethel said, then later adding that it was the man’s son.
The man was asked to leave Wednesday, and when he returned Thursday, he was not allowed to enter the hospital, said Bethel, who did not elaborate on why the man was asked to leave.
But when he returned Thursday, “he did not threaten” staff and was “compliant.”
Shortly thereafter, a relative called police and reported that the man was suicidal and may have a gun, Bethel said.
Police drove to the bus stop on Erie Avenue outside the hospital where the man was and an officer was just exiting from the passenger side of a police vehicle when the man allegedly pulled out a gun, Bethel said. The officer then fired.
The man was transported to Temple University Hospital, where he later died. Bethel said a gun was recovered at the scene.
A woman standing next to the man, who Bethel described as his girlfriend, was grazed by a bullet. He said she was in good condition.
“He did not fire his weapon,” Bethel said about the man.
The officer who fatally shot the man was placed on administrative duty while the shooting is investigated.
At an earlier media briefing, Bethel described the shooting as a tragedy that unfolded in a matter of minutes.
He added: “We have a lot to sort through,” including the mental state of the man who was killed. “He may have been going through some mental issue,” Bethel said.
No patients or hospital staff were injured, said hospital spokesperson Bill Tierney. The man who was shot did not come inside the hospital, he said.
The hospital initially went into a lockdown, which has since been lifted, Tierney said. Some entrances to the hospital were closed during the initial police investigation but they had reopened by Thursday afternoon, he said.
Police have not released the name, age, or rank of the officer who discharged his weapon.
Michael Lopez, a senior staffer at a sports complex across the street from the hospital, said he heard about a half dozen gunshots. Initially mistaking the gunfire for July Fourth fireworks, Lopez said he came out to Erie Avenue, where he saw a throng of police officers — and a woman he said appeared to be bleeding from her neck.
“It was gruesome,” Lopez said.
Thursday’s shooting was the second fatal shooting by a Philadelphia police officer in less than three weeks.
On June 14, three officers were injured and Eric Franks was fatally wounded after exchanging gunfire in the Wynnefield neighborhood of West Philadelphia. The officers — who were shot in the hip, leg, and face — were hospitalized and recovered, police said.
Their names had not been released as of Thursday because of an active threat assessment, said police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp.
— Staff writer Robert Moran contributed to this article.
Philadelphia can’t prevent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents and other federal officers from concealing their identities, a federal judge ruled Thursday.
U.S. District Judge Chad F. Kenney issued an order preventing Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s administration and District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office from barring federallaw enforcement officers from wearing masks, intentionally covering their badges, or using unmarked vehicles.
The U.S. Constitution’s Supremacy Clause prevents states — or a city in this case — from imposing requirements on how federal agencies carry out their duties, the judge appointed by President Donald Trump said.
When City Council passed the bill in April as part of the ICE Out legislative package, the lawmakers “attempted to sidestep the Constitution’s clear mandate and disregarded this fundamental principle of law that has informed American jurisprudence for over 200 years,” Kenney’s opinion said.
Parker allowed the bill to become law without her signature, following City Solicitor Renee Garcia’s advice that signing the bill “would send an inaccurate signal to the public that the Administration can legally and practically enforce” its provisions.
“Mayor Cherelle Parker acted with civic wisdom and courage to stand up for the Constitution and follow the rule of law to where it led, despite what may have been strong personal inclinations to the contrary,” the judge said.
While the ordinance’s requirements apply to all law enforcement, its inclusion in an “ICE Out” package suggested the city planned to be selective in its enforcement, Kenney said.
“The Department of Justice will keep fighting jurisdictions that try to obstruct President Trump’s immigration enforcement with policies that endanger agents and public safety,” a department spokesperson said.
The city is reviewing the ruling and potential next steps, a law department spokesperson said.
Kenney showed an “unnecessary urgency” from the beginning of the case, Krasner said.
“The red-hot rush of this federal district court judge, a Delaware County Republican appointed by Donald Trump, was predictable,” the district attorney said.
The ordinance at the heart of the litigation made it a crime for law enforcement officers, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, to wear face coverings or conceal personal identifiers like badges and nameplates while carrying out their official duties in Philadelphia, and required officers to identify themselves. It also prohibited the use of unmarked vehicles.
The bill included exceptions allowing officers to wear masks in certain circumstances, such as medical emergencies or SWAT operations.
An officer could face up to 90 days in jail plus a fine for violating the ordinance.
The other bills prohibit federal immigration agencies from staging raids on city-owned property, ban discrimination on the basis of citizenship status, and prohibit the city from engaging in most forms of information-sharing with ICE.
Parker signed the six other bills, which will take effect Tuesday.
Kendra Brooks shown here during a press conference at City Hall to announce a package of bills aimed at pushing back against ICE enforcement in Philadelphia, January 27, 2026.
Officials from various federal agencies told the court the bill would harm their operations and officers.
Members of the public routinely dox ICE agents, who are later subject to threats, John Rife, acting director of ICE’s Philadelphia field office, said in a filing.
“Facial coverings reduce the risk of officers’ personal identities being shared publicly, which helps ensure that officers’ privacy and safety, and that of their family members, remains intact,” Rife said.
The city argued the litigation was premature as the ordinance hasn’t gone into effect and there was no attempt to enforce it.
The city also said federal agents had applied “aggressive enforcement tactics behind the mask of anonymity, undermining public safety and trust.”
But Kenney’s opinion said, “there can be no public interest” in enforcing a provision that violates the Constitution.
It doesn’t make sense that the city can’t hold federal officers to the same standard it holds its own police department to, Councilmember Rue Landau, who authored the bills with fellow progressive Kendra Brooks, said in a statement.
The Trump administration has sued other jurisdictions, including New Jersey, over similar requirements. In April, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit found that a California bill requiring agents to “visibly display identification” was unconstitutional.
“It’s unfortunate the Parker administration’s own doubts were used against the bill in this injunction,” Brooks said in a statement. “No one else is dealing with that dynamic in their lawsuits.”
While all eyes are on Independence Hall this week, something almost unfathomable happened more than 200 years ago: It was nearly demolished.
Between the 18th and 19th centuries, Pennsylvania’s capital had moved to Harrisburg from Philadelphia, by way of Lancaster, and lawmakers wanted a new statehouse. The obsolete building then known as the Old State House in Philadelphia, on Chestnut between Fifth and Sixth Streets, was on prime real estate, according to Villanova University professor and historian Whitney Martinko.
So, they contemplated demolishing the building and selling off the salvage and parcels of land to the highest bidders to fund the grand statehouse. But Philadelphians mounted a campaign to save what’s now called Independence Hall — the Georgian-style building where the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution were debated and drafted. Today, Independence Hall stands as a testament to the Founding Fathers’ ideals as the country prepares for its 250th birthday this Saturday.
“People looked to Independence Hall — already in the 1810s — as an important building and historic site,” said Martinko, who studies historic preservation in the early U.S. “Some of those people were residents of Philadelphia who didn’t want to lose a local landmark … but other people were really tourists who came to Philadelphia to see the site.”
Independence Hall in 1950, looking north from Walnut Street, in the area that would become Independence Mall.
The state initially wouldn’t budge on its $150,000 price tag for the building, according to Martinko’s research, but after its yearslong campaign, the city ultimately purchased the plot for $70,000, or less than $2 million today. The deal, which was finalized in 1818, cemented Independence Hall’s legacy as a monument to the great American experiment.
Government offices occupied the building, while the State House yard remained public green space. What’s now Independence National Historical Park was once a maze of industry, mixed-use buildings, and alleyways.
By the mid-20th century, those blocks were razed, with some giving way to Independence Mall, in a push to beautify and boost civic pride.
“Preservation and stewardship of historic sites is an ongoing decision — it’s very easy to take for granted buildings that are preserved today are going to be there tomorrow,“ Martinko said, ”but there’s no guarantee that any building will be here tomorrow or in 50 or 100 years.
“History needs stewards and we all need to think of ourselves as people who should be engaged with saving places.”
Temple University on Tuesday identified a 20-year-old student who was killed last week by a hit-and-run driver on Kelly Drive.
Bryce Wolfe, of Conyngham, a borough in Luzerne County, was an actuarial science major in the Fox School of Business and had just completed his sophomore year, said Temple President John Fry in a joint statement to the university community with Jodi Bailey Accavallo, vice president of student affairs, and Denise Wilhelm, interim vice president for public safety.
Wolfe was riding a motorcycle when he was struck by a vehicle believed to be a white SUV, his parents said in an interview late Tuesday night.
The unidentified driver dragged Wolfe for more than a mile on Kelly Drive, Clarence Wolfe III said.
“We’re committed to getting justice for our son,” Lori Wolfe said.
Philadelphia police said they responded to a report of a crash at Kelly and Reservoir Drives around 11:15 p.m. on June 24.
Police said they believe the driver of a white SUV was traveling east on Kelly Drive and was trying to make an illegal turn onto Reservoir Drive, but then attempted to return to eastbound Kelly Drive when the SUV entered the westbound path of the red 2004 Triumph motorcycle Wolfe was riding.
Wolfe became trapped beneath the SUV and was dragged to the area of Fountain Green Drive before his body was dislodged from the SUV, police said.
Wolfe was transported by medics to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and pronounced dead at 4:41 a.m. on June 25, police said.
The suspected SUV sustained damage on the driver’s side and damage to the driver’s-side front wheel well, fender, and possibly driver’s-side door, police said.
“Thanks to an anonymous donor, there is a $10,000 reward available for information leading to an arrest and conviction,” Fry said.
Anyone with information about the case can contact police at 215-686-TIPS (8477), Fry said.
Wolfe “had quickly established a reputation as both an excellent student and engaged member of the Temple community,” maintaining a high grade-point average while being enrolled in both Temple and Fox Honors program, Fry said.
“Bryce was also deeply involved outside of class as he was a member of the student professional organization Gamma Iota Sigma and had recently started an internship with United States Liability Insurance Group,” Fry said.
“There is no doubt that he had a very bright future ahead of him, and that’s what makes delivering this news especially difficult,” Fry said.
President Donald Trump’s administration has spent almost a year scrutinizing, and then dismantling, and then trying to rewrite history at one of Independence Mall’s most informative exhibits on slavery.
Transportation SecretarySean Duffy, who has been one of the Trump administration’s biggest cheerleaders for this week’s 250th anniversary celebrations, produced a video asking Mayor Cherelle L. Parker which Philadelphia historical sites visitors should see.
Parker listed the highlights — the National Constitution Center, Independence Mall, the Liberty Bell, and ended her list of recommendations with the President’s House, which memorializes the nine people enslaved by George Washington in Philadelphia.
“Reconnect with our history, recommit to the democratic values that we stand on, and have an amazing time,” Parker said.
Cue Duffy showcasing pictures of the very panels at the President’s House that his boss wants to take down.
There are few places that are better to celebrate America’s 250th birthday and to go on a road trip than the BEDROCK of DEMOCRACY: Philadelphia
Thank you to @PhillyMayor Cherelle Parker for showing us her can’t miss stops for road trippers in the City of Brotherly Love!
The video, which was posted Wednesday to Duffy’s social media, appears to have been filmed in May, when Duffy visited Philadelphia while the city and the Trump administration were in the midst of alegal battle over the President’s House after the federal government removed the site’s exhibits earlier this year.
After the Third Circuit’s ruling, Parker said in a statement that: “I will pursue every legal action possible to reverse this decision. We cannot and WILL not rest until the full story of American history — including the existence of slavery at the President’s House here in Philadelphia — is told, for our Nation and the World to see.”
On Thursday, a Boston-based federal appeals court removed the final legal obstacle that prevented the Trump administration from installing its own exhibits at the President’s House.
This was not Duffy’s only visit to Philadelphia that coincided with a key event in the President’s House saga. Duffy joined Interior Secretary Doug Burgum in a visit to Independence National Historical Park in September 2025, just days after reports that the Interior Department planned to make changes to the President’s House.
The secretaries were preparing for the Semiquincentennial celebrations. The Transportation Department, led by Duffy, has promoted road trips to a number of sites targeted by the Interior for changes, including Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in Virginia, in addition to the sites in Philadelphia.
Duffy, a former MTV reality television star, hasfaced backlash for shooting a reality TV-style travel series with his family over the span of several months called The Great American Road Trip, meant to encourage celebrating the United States ahead of the 250th.
A trailer for the series shows that he stopped in Philadelphia and visited LOVE Parkand the Liberty Bell.
In Wednesday’s video, which does not appear to be related to the series, Duffy says, “There’s no better place to go than where it all began in Philadelphia.”
“This city is truly amazing, and the history that exists here,” Duffy said, “No one has it.”
Bill Wine, 81, of Philadelphia, three-time Mid-Atlantic Emmy Award-winning film and TV critic, retired tenured associate professor of TV and film at La Salle University, onetime freelance TV critic for the Daily News, freelance writer, playwright, and popular lecturer, died Sunday, June 14, of complications from Parkinson’s disease at his home in Chestnut Hill.
The son of two part-time amateur actors and a lifelong devotee of theater, film, TV, writing, and teaching, Mr. Wine was a film critic for WTXF-TV, Channel 29, for 12 years and KYW radio for 17 years. Known for his pithy, witty, and often acerbic reviews, and a breezy conversational style of writing, he worked at Channel 29 from 1990 to 2002 and KYW from 2001 to 2018.
“Bill Wine was a character out of a Neil Simon comedy, more Oscar than Felix,” said Carrie Rickey, former Inquirer movie critic. “You didn’t have to wait long for the punchline.”
Mr. Wine’s film reviews on Channel 29 were often funny and entertaining.
At Channel 29, Mr. Wine was nominated for eight regional Emmy Awards for commentary and writing, and won three. He appeared regularly on the station’s Ten O’Clock News, in primetime movie preview and review programs, and later on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays on Good Day Philadelphia.
By 1990, he had already written hundreds of freelance film reviews for the Daily News and Courier-Post, done radio reviews for WPEN, and taught a variety of classes about film and writing for a decade at La Salle. So, despite no previous TV experience, he was hired at Channel 29 over 60 other film critic applicants.
“I had never been on TV, but I wasn’t nervous,” he told the Daily News in 2001, “because I had been standing in front of 100 students for 10 years.”
Mr. Wine worked at at WTXF-TV, Channel 29, for 12 years.
He started at KYW radio in 2001 and usually aired reviews and reports on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Sometimes, he watched three movies in one day. He left Channel 29 in 2002 and KYW in 2018 only after both companies eliminated their local film critic position.
“When I started [writing film reviews], it was before the internet,” he told The Inquirer in 2018. “A lot of people [now] feel like, ‘Who the heck is a movie critic to come on in a minute and to dismiss something that took hundreds of people and millions of dollars to create?’”
In the 1970s and ‘80s, he wrote articles and reviewed films, TV shows, books, and plays for WPEN, The Inquirer, Courier-Post, Philadelphia Magazine, and other outlets. In 1975, he wrote dozens of freelance TV columns called “On the Air” for the Daily News.
Mr. Wine wrote dozens of columns as a freelance TV critic for the Daily News in 1975.
He spent three years in California in the 1970s working on plays and film and TV scripts. He hobnobbed with famous writers, producers, and actors in Los Angeles, staged one of his own plays, and was a winning contestant on a new TV game show.
He wrote 11 plays over the years, and several made it to the stage. “Now the people who disagree with my reviews can come and find out if I’m as dumb as they think I am,” he told The Inquirer in 2002.
He aired reviews on WIP radio and lectured often at libraries, schools, community centers, theaters, and other venues about his favorite films, adapting books to film, and other topics.“He could be wickedly funny, especially when delivering a pan of a movie,” his family said in a tribute. “One of his favorite quotes was: ‘I had a bad seat. It was facing the screen.’”
Mr. Wine was a prolific playwright who enjoyed table readings with family and friends.
Mr. Wine earned a bachelor’s degree in math at Drexel University and a master’s degree in communications at Temple University. He helped design La Salle’s nascent Communication Department in the 1980s, and school officials called him one of their “Founding Fathers.” He also taught briefly at Drexel, and came close to earning a doctorate at Temple.
In 2001, he was featured in a Daily News story about “celebrity professors” and said: “You have to remind yourself that this is television, not the classroom. You mention, say, ‘film noir’ on TV, and you get a memo.”
William David Wine was born June 21, 1944, in Germantown. He grew up in West Oak Lane and Cherry Hill, attended Central High School, and graduated from the old Cherry Hill High School.
A story and this photo of Mr. Wine about his time as a professor at La Salle appeared in the Daily News in 2001.
As a boy, he devoured newspaper movie reviews and fell in love with film after seeing Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 thriller Rear Window. He got positive reviews of his own freelance movie review when he was at Temple, and he knew then, he said later, that writing about movies was his creative niche.
He married Dina Lichtman, and they divorced later. He married Suzanne Monsalud in 1981, and they had daughters Simone and Paulina, and lived in Germantown, Wyncote, and Chestnut Hill.
Mr. Wine and his wife, Suzanne, married in 1981.
Together, Mr. Wine and his family traveled to Paris and London, and he and his wife honeymooned in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He doted on his daughters and sometimes took them to his La Salle classroom, the Channel 29 TV set, and movie screenings.
Friends, former colleagues, and former students called him “a force of nature,” “smart and gifted,” and “a rare combination of kindness, professionalism, and humor.” His daughter Simone said: “His humor, warmth, and presence made life brighter.”
Mr. Wine played tennis, third base on adult softball teams, and pickup basketball into his 70s. He followed the Phillies, 76ers, and Eagles closely, and hit tennis balls with Hall of Famer Rod Laver at a publicity event in Los Angeles.
Mr. Wine and his family made memorable trips to Paris, London, and elsewhere.
“He was a wonderful father and a dedicated teacher,” his wife said. “He was a real Philadelphian, and we complemented each other.”
His daughter Paulina said: “Dad, I think you cracked the code. We’ll see you at the movies.”
A teenager who authorities say killed a Penn State student surrendered to Philadelphia police on Thursday, one day after U.S. marshals captured a second teen wanted in the slaying more than 1,700 miles from the South Philadelphia street where the crime occurred.
Smith and Azzubair Outen-Fleming, 16, are expected to face charges of murder, robbery, criminal conspiracy, illegal possession of a firearm, and related crimes in the June 6 death of William “Billy” Schmidt.
Both teens had been on the run until Wednesday night, authorities said, when members of the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Outen-Fleming at a house in Colorado Springs, Colo.
Smith remained at large until Thursday.
Police have said Outen-Fleming and Smith killed Schmidt, 22, shortly after 1 a.m. as he walked toward his South Philadelphia home.
According to prosecutors, surveillance video captured two masked people — identified by investigators as Outen-Fleming and Smith — robbing Schmidt of his cell phone, searching his pockets, and then, moments later, shooting him.
Smith, they said, is accused of firing the fatal shot.
The teenagers fled after the shooting, police said.
On Wednesday, prosecutors also announced charges against Outen-Fleming’s stepfather, Donte Abdulmalik, who they said helped him evade authorities after the killing.
Abdulmalik was charged with hindering apprehension, obstruction of justice, tampering with evidence, and related crimes.
Deputies with the U.S. Marshals Service’s Violent Offender Task Force tracked Outen-Fleming this week to a house in southern Colorado Springs with “ties to his family in Philadelphia,” Supervisory Deputy U.S. Marshal Robert Clark said. After conducting surveillance, deputies arrested him there late Wednesday.
Schmidt’s father, William, did not return a phone call Thursday afternoon, and attempts to reach other family members were unsuccessful.
Philadelphia police spokesperson Sgt. Eric Gripp said it was not clear when Outen-Fleming would be returned to Philadelphia.
Jahylin Melchur, 21, is wanted in connection with two homicides and the shooting near the large North Philadelphia park, according to police.
He is accused of killing 45-year-old Martin Higgins in the park on June 20. Officers found Higgins on the bleachers of the baseball field around 10 p.m. that evening suffering from a gunshot wound to the torso, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Less than a week later, police said, Melchur shot and killed 29-year-old Sharef Holman not far from where Higgins was killed.
Officers responded there on June 26 just before 11 p.m. and found Holman suffering from multiple gunshot wounds near the basketball courts. He was taken to Temple University Hospital, where he died a short time later.
And on May 29, investigators said, Melchur shot a 55-year-old man in Juniata Park, about two miles from the recreation center. The victim told police Melchur had attempted to rob him before shooting him in the elbow and torso.
Police are seeking the public’s help in finding Melchur, who they say is considered armed and dangerous and whose image, captured on surveillance footage at a Broad Street Line station, was circulated widely last week in an effort to locate him.
Law enforcement sources said the victims were found partially clothed, and that they were looking into whether they had met the suspect through a dating app.
Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore declined to address that aspect of the investigation in a news conference last week and said police were looking into whether the incidents were related to robberies.
Who were the victims?
Sharef Holman’s loved ones said the 29-year-old lived a life of faith and compassion, and that he was the life of any party he attended.
His mother, Danielle, said her son was beloved on both sides of his large family.
“He was tall in stature, and the children in our family loved to climb him,” she said. “The reason why I start there is because Sharef had a heart for the youth.”
Sharef Holman, a 29-year-old man who was shot and killed near the Hunting Park Recreation Center in June.
Holman, who was born in Philadelphia and graduated from Samuel Fels High School in Crescentville, loved playing the saxophone and dancing, his mother said. He excelled in his school’s musical theater program, and once played Ebenezer Scrooge, the lead role in A Christmas Carol.
He had most recently worked at The Belvedere nursing home in Chester, where he assisted residents with recreational programs, and he tutored schoolchildren with the Greenhouse Project, a nearby Christian nonprofit.
For a time, his mother said, Holman struggled with drug addiction, and she remembers the pride she felt when he graduated from a rehab program two years ago.
“He had been fighting addiction for some years, and this last one was the one where he was the most successful,” she said, adding that her son’s progress allowed him to get an apartment of his own.
Danielle Holman said she and her family are planning a celebration of her son’s life this weekend. As they prepare to honor and remember him, she said, they hope police will find and bring their son’s killer to justice.
The family of Martin Higgins, who was shot and killed days before Holman, declined to be interviewed as they deal with their loss.
Higgins, 45, was a graduate of Temple University’s business school and worked as an inspector for the city’s Community Life Improvement Program, according to his obituary.
He had a “kind heart, generous spirit, and unwavering support for those he loved,” the obituary said, and he “was the person who showed up when someone needed him, always making time for family and friends no matter what was going on in his own life.”
Police ask that anyone with information about Melchur contact the homicide unit at 215-686-3334 or submit an anonymous tip by calling 215-686-TIPS (8477).
In the grand casino of the atmosphere, scheduling outdoor events on July Fourth in the Philly region is almost always going to be a rolling of the bones.
And on the day Philadelphia and the rest of the nation are holding a mass 250th birthday party, the odds may be dicier than usual, with thunderstorms and accompanying lightning possible Saturday afternoon and night, forecasters say.
The National Weather Service on Thursday listed a 50-50 chance of storms Saturday night, and the federal Storm Prediction Center, in Norman, Okla., bumped up the probability of severe storms — those with winds up to 60 mph — to 15%.
July happens to be the peak month for lightning-bearing thunderstorms in Philadelphia, occurring every five days on average, and who doesn’t want to be outside on the Fourth?
As if record-challenging heat and an atmosphere that feels like syrup weren’t enough.
Lightning injuries and fatalities are rare — on average in the last decade, 20 people have been killed annually by lightning in the United States, according to the National Weather Service. But among outdoor events with large crowds across the country, Philly’s July Fourth concert would be among the riskiest for lightning, according to Stephen Strader, disaster specialist at Villanova University.
“It’s way up there, a lot higher than I thought it was,” he said.
The city is well aware of the atmosphere’s capriciousness, the potential risks in July, and the potential effects on the Parkway celebration and the World Cup match in South Philly and has developed safety protocols, said Jeffery Kolakowski, communications director for the Office of Emergency Management.
Unfortunately, for attendees and planners, predicting the when and where for thunderstorms remains elusive.
“There’s uncertainty of the when and where of the storms,” said Rich Thompson, branch chief and lead forecaster at the federal Storm Prediction Center, in Norman, Okla., the source of those severe storm and tornado watches. “It’s still one of the great frontiers of meteorology. It’s incredibly difficult.”
‘Ring of Fire’ fireworks and the weekend forecasts
Readings soared to 97 on Wednesday, and the heat index shot past 105 in Philly as the atmosphere thickened in a hurry.
And it’s about to get thicker. The heat is forecast to peak Thursday and Friday with highs surpassing 100. It could cool down all the way to 99 on Saturday, said Matt Benz, senior meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc. Unfortunately that would indicate increasing volatility in the atmosphere.
High pressure though the atmosphere, the so-called heat dome phenomenon, has put a lid on convective storms, “but that starts to come off Friday into Saturday,” he said. That could lead to “ring of fire” thunderstorms, so named because they form on heat-dome edges. They can be especially nasty.
“We’re worried that something is going to be blowing up,” he said.
The storms could come in one bunch in the early evening and yield to a peaceful night, but they also could come in waves over a period of hours.
Even without strong storms — or storms not in the immediate vicinity of the festivities — lightning strikes are possible.
“Unfortunately that could be the biggest concern that day you’ve got lighting and people outdoors,” said Benz.
The lightning threat
The chances of being struck by lightning are remote, about one in a million in a given year, according to the weather service.
But they do happen: They’re what Strader calls “low probability events” with “high consequences.” In 2019, several people were injured when lightning struck at a PGA tournament in Georgia.
In 2014, a severe thunderstorm forced thousands of concertgoers at Philadelphia’s Made in America Music Festival to evacuate the Parkway for a short time that Sunday evening.
But for the most part, Fourth of July fireworks have been confined to the manmade kind.
In his analysis, Strader looked at thousands of outdoor events attended by 10,000 or more people, what he called “large outdoor public gatherings,” to calculate which ones would expose the most people to cloud-to-ground lightning strikes, taking into account location and time of year.
He found that both the Parkway and World Cup events in Philly this year would rank among the top 6%, using his criteria. The Parkway would be particularly problematic given the lack of shelter options.
All during the events the City’s Emergency Operations Center will be operating with a “play by play” from a National Weather Service forecaster, said Kolakowski.
In the event of lightning he said, “an evacuation of the area could be issued and people would be asked to leave the event ground in a safe manner and seek shelter.”
He said weather messages would be broadcast on screens, loudspeakers, social media, and text alert.
He added that people can get free event or safety alerts by texting CUPPHL or AMERICA to 888-777.
John Adams wanted ‘pomp and parade’ to mark July 2. For the 250th, Philly tried, despite the heat.
Participants gather to create the Living Liberty Bell, gathering 250 people to form the shape of the famous bell on Independence Mall (with the backdrop of Independence Hall) adorned in red, white, and blue, at Independence Hall, July 2, 2026.
As the mercury climbed above 100 degrees in the Philadelphia region two days before the nation’s 250th birthday, it was, it seemed, too hot for liberty as originally planned.
Thursday marked the start of the Red White & Blue To-Do — Philadelphia’s third-annual celebration of the day the Second Continental Congress voted to adopt a resolution of independence here on July 2, 1776. Though many events honoring that anniversary were planned, several highly anticipated gatherings were canceled or postponed due to the heat.
And yet, despite the oppressive temperatures on a particularly toasty July day in the cradle of the nation’s founding, the celebration started early Thursday.
At 7 a.m., some 250 revelers, clad in red, white, and blue clothing, gathered at Independence Mall to make a living Liberty Bell — a representation of a symbol that has defined Philadelphia for centuries, and a touchstone for Americans nationwide. The human formation even captured the bell’s signature crack through an outline of participants wearing blue.
Drone show still set for 10 p.m. tonight over National Constitution Center
While other events have been canceled because of the heat, the Independence Illumination Drone Show is still scheduled for 10 p.m. Thursday over the National Constitution Center and is viewable from Independence Mall.
Photos: Union Pacific’s legendary ‘Big Boy’ locomotive heading to Philly
Union Pacific’s Big Boy No. 4014 will arrive in Philadelphia on Saturday in time for Fourth of July celebrations, completing its journey from the West Coast. The legendary locomotive has drawn thousands of spectators as it has traveled across Pennsylvania.
The Big Boy is headed to Intrepid Avenue and League Island Boulevard at the Navy Yard, where the Port of Philadelphia will host a public viewing from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and again on Sunday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. before heading west. Admission is free.
Earlier on Thursday, over-heated train fans gathered near Reading to see Big Boy required medical attention because of the scorching temperatures.
“Preliminary estimates indicate that more than 100 patients required medical evaluation and care throughout the incident,” the Blandon Fire Department, one of the numerous responding agencies, posted on Facebook.
The official high reached 103 Thursday in Philly, tying a record perhaps fittingly set in 1901 when the nation was marking its 125th birthday, halfway to the Semiquincentennial.
The bar is a shade higher Friday when the record is 104, and Saturday’s would be 103, both set during a sizzling heat wave in 1966.
Relief-bearing showers are unlikely Friday, said Patrick O’Hara, meteorologist with the National Weather Service Office in Mount Holly, N.J.
However, the 50-50 chance remains for Saturday night, coinciding with the climax of the city’s Welcome America celebration on a World Cup game.
Severe storms are possible, the federal Storm Prediction Center says.
Sunday, the highs might not get past 90, or the low 80s on Monday.
Salute to Service, featuring Queen Latifah, has been canceled because of extreme heat
A man working the event (right) tells folks that the Wawa Welcome America’s Salute to Service featuring the United States Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus on Independence Mall with superstar Queen Latifah has been cancelled because of the excessive heat on Thursday, July 2, 2026.
The Wawa Welcome America Salute to Service concert has been canceled because of the extreme heat, organizers announced via social media just after 5 p.m. Thursday.
The concert was to feature Queen Latifah and the United States Army Field Band & Soldiers’ Chorus performing at Independence National Historical Park. It was intended to be a “rousing performance honoring our soldiers and veterans,” according to a description of the event online.
It was set to begin at 8 p.m., but is now among a list of several other events that have been canceled or rescheduled due to the heat blanketing the Philadelphia region. Temperatures topped 100 degrees in the city Thursday afternoon, and the heat is expected to continue into Friday.
Sign announcing the cancellation of Thursday night’s Salute to Service concert featuring Queen Latifah and the U.S. Army field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus at Independence National Historical Park due to a declared heat emergency with 100-plus temperatures.
Artists perform music, poetry at historic locations across Old City
More than two dozen Philadelphia artists filled 11 historic spaces across Old City Thursday afternoon with music, poetry, and powerful vibes as part of WXPN Welcomes the Red, White & Blue To-Do Music Series.
The audience seats, however, were not all filled as crowds remained light and foot traffic across the historic district was much sparser than an average Thursday.
Legendary Philly poet and recording artist Ursula Rucker performed with Miles Orion on guitar at the Arch Street Meetinghouse for a crowd of about a dozen people. She gave moving renditions of her poems — like “Philadelphia Child” and “Fear or Freedom” — and ended her set on “L.O.V.E.”
“Love soft, love hard, just love,” she said, encouraging the small crowd to repeat one of the most powerful words in the English language with her – love.
Over at Mother Bethel AME Church, 21 members of the Mass choir accompanied by an organist and drummer performed gospel music for a crowd of about just as many spectators. The floorboards of the church’s social hall vibrated, hands clapped, and feet tapped as the choir beautifully performed songs like “Battlefield” and “Yes, God is real.”
“They just about blew the roof off!” said Dolly Marshall, who frequents the church.
Marshall, a historic preservation specialist for the city of Camden, is a “Bicentennial baby” who’s celebrating both the country’s birth and her own milestone birthday this year. She’s also a descendent of James Forten, who was a Revolutionary Philadelphia sailmaker, abolitionist, and Black patriot.
“I wanted to be a part of the festivities today. Seeing people come together, we should carry this spirit all year long. You’ve seen the evidence with FIFA and the World Cup too, people coming together from different denominations and different cultures. That’s the beauty of celebrations like these,” she said. “Of course, this coincides with other things that are going on in the country, some that aren’t so pleasant. We’re divided in many ways, so these times also shed light on the work that still needs to be done.”
Rev. Carolyn C. Cavaness, pastor of Mother Bethel AME, said she wanted to open the church’s doors for the Red, White & Blue To-Do because it sits on the oldest parcel of land continuously owned by African-Americans in the country, dating back to 1791.
“I’ve been reflecting, here we’re celebrating the birthday of America but there are people who are not invited to the party. There are people who are still left out. So how do we, in this generation, show that all men and women are created equal?” she said. “And not only in word and ideal but in deed and thought and how we legislate and how we live and embrace each other.”
Mother Bethel AME Mass choir performing as part of @wxpnfm.bsky.social Red, White & Blue music series in Philly today.
At Independence Hall, Hakeem Jeffries said it was important to speak about the history of slavery in America
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington in May.
During his speech Thursday afternoon at Independence Hall, Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries underscored the country’s history of slavery that coexisted during the nation’s founding. He also emphasized that Americans have no king and should never obey one. He said it was important to speak to those themes to remind people of the founders’ ideals.
“The Declaration of Independence was pretty clear as a defiant document in breaking away from King George III and establishing a country where there would be representative democracy based on the consent of the government, where there are no subjects, only citizens,” he said.
The city of Philadelphia and President Donald Trump’s administration have been embroiled in a battle over language that references George Washington, who enslaved people as the country gained its independence.
Jeffries said he has not had a chance to see the updated language yet.
“But I think it’s important for us to embrace the fact that America was not born as a perfect country, but the framers and the founders of our great republic were able to set us on a path toward always marching to a more perfect union,” he said.
Only a few Republicans, including U.S. Reps. Glenn Thompson and Rob Aderholt, attended Thursday’s session. No members of Republican leadership in Congress attended.
“Speaker Johnson, I didn’t get an opportunity to talk about why he wasn’t present here today, but I’m thankful that I was here, and it’s a very special day that I will,” he said, referring to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R., La.).
Thompson, a Republican who represents Pennsylvania, said he was proud to attend Thursday’s event: “Oh, who would not want to be a part of celebrating the actual 250th anniversary of our independence?”
Several speeches during the special Congressional session emphasized the need for Congress to remain an independent branch and exercise its authority to check power on the executive. To Thompson, the remarks seemed ”a little political,” he said, “but it is an excellent observation, whenever we don’t have a king, we can thank George Washington for that.”
Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries says “there are no kings in America” in his speech during the special Congressional session in Philadelphia. pic.twitter.com/KFi7d3WVw1
Philly performances by Jill Scott, The Roots will be featured on CBS primetime special July 4th
Fil photo of Jill Scott performing at The Met on March 16, 2023.
CBS will highlight performances in Philadelphia by Jill Scott and The Roots during a three-hour “primetime” televised special July 4th, the network announced Thursday.
CBS will broadcast from 8 to 11 p.m. Saturday The Great American Block Party 250 from 8 to 11 p.m. hosted from the nation’s capital by CBS Evening News anchor Tony Dokoupil and Entertainment Tonight co-host Nischelle Turner, the network said.
The special, which will be streamed on Paramount+ and CBS News 24/7, will feature musical performance from across the country, “grill sessions” with Washington chef Rock Harper, and a big fireworks show.
The performances by Jill Scott and The Roots are part of the scheduled One Philly Unity Concert for America in Philadelphia.
Jarquiza Ayers, on the staff of U.S. Rep. Watson Coleman, uses a handheld fan to cool off U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans, seated In Congress Hall at Independence Hall on Thursday before some 30-40 members of the House of Representatives gathered for a ceremonial event to mark the 250th anniversary of the day the Second Continental Congress voted for independence.
Members of the U.S. Congress lined up Thursday to enter Independence Hall in Philadelphia, the site where, 250 years ago, the Second Continental Congress gathered to declare independence from Great Britain. Rep. Glenn Thompson (R., Pa.) opened the ceremonial event, saying “the origins of our republic trace back to Pennsylvania.”
In speeches, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries reminded attendees of the history of the founders’ goals that America has no king, and that what would become the legislative branch is separate from the executive and acts as a check on power.
Members of both parties attended, wearing suits and waving fans — a sign of the 100-degree heat outside the Hall in Philadelphia.
Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Democrat whose district includes Independence Hall, had worked for two years to convene a special Congressional ceremonial event to mark the 250th anniversary of the vote to declare independence.
He motioned to pass into the Congressional record that reads: “The members of Congress present on this day come together in the spirit of unity and celebration … to reflect on the best of our nation’s founding ideals.”
About 30 members of Congress attended the special meeting.
Following a benediction from Rep. Robert Menendez (D., N.J.), the special session adjourned.
Extreme heat leads to canceled and postponed July 4 plans across South Jersey
Countless parades, fireworks, drone shows, and more are scheduled for this weekend to celebrate the Fourth of July and the nation’s 250th birthday across South Jersey, but extreme heat is complicating plans.
With temperatures forecast to exceed 100 degrees through Independence Day, some South Jersey towns are taking steps to keep residents out of the heat — even if it means canceling their annual holiday events.
Others that haven’t taken any major steps yet are advising residents to stay hydrated and out of the direct sunlight as much as possible over the weekend.
Essentials carted in ahead of ceremonial Congressional event
The seal of the U.S. House of Representatives waits outside Independence Hall Thursday, July 2, before some 30 to 40 members of Congress gather for a ceremonial event to mark the 250th anniversary of the day the Second Continental Congress voted for independence.
Visitors to the Liberty Bell, in Philadelphia, July 2, 2026.
For the 63rd time in records dating to 1874, the temperature reached 100 degrees on Thursday afternoon, officially in Philadelphia, and the heat index jumped to 109 at 1 p.m.
The forecast high, 103, would match a record for a July 2, set back in 1901 when the nation was marking its 125th birthday,
While summers have become warmer in Philadelphia, 100-degree readings have been relatively scarce this century.
On average, temperatures of 100 or higher have occurred every four years in Philly, but when it reached 100 last summer, that was the first time in 13 years, the longest 100-less stretch on record.
It had reached 100 in three consecutive summers ending in 2012, and five consecutive years ending in 1955.
Things may change tomorrow; it might get a little warmer.
More than 100 mayors learn about historical significance of July 2nd, 1776, at Museum of the American Revolution
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker interacts with visiting mayors on July 2.
More than 100 mayors, some with families in tow, gathered in a small auditorium in the Museum of the American Revolution and learned about the historical significance of this day 250 years ago.
On July 2, 1776, 12 of the 13 colonies voted in favor of independence from Great Britain, explained Tom Cochran, U.S. Conference of Mayors CEO and executive director. Only New York cast a no vote until a few days later, when it got on board as well.
“We talk about the Declaration, we talk about the Constitution, it was on that day, July 2nd … that we broke,” Cochran said.
He put the work that political leaders executed on that day two and a half centuries ago in terms the modern-day U.S. mayors would understand.
The resolution the officials voted on in 1776 “didn’t have 35 whereas clauses,” Cochran explained, as are common in modern-day resolutions reviewed in local government chambers. This resolution, he explained, only had one clause.
“Resolved, that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent states,” Cochran said, quoting the resolution.
It was only in coming together and sharing ideas that the representatives from across the colonies accomplished an extraordinary thing. Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker urged the mayors at the symposium to do the same at this meeting.
“May today’s conversations strengthen old friendships, spark new ideas, and renew our shared commitment to public service,” Parker said. “Welcome to Philadelphia, everyone. Let’s roll up our sleeves and continue the hard work together.”
Floats, dance, and a lot of sun: Pomp & Parade winds through historic district
A member of Gente de Venezuela Philly marches through Independence Mall during the Red, White, & Blue To-Do Pomp & Parade event on Thursday, July 2, 2026, in Philadelphia.
Performers from neighborhoods across Philadelphia and nations around the world weren’t slowed down by oppressive temperatures Thursday as they marched, stepped, and danced their way down Independence Mall in the Red, White & Blue To-Do Pomp & Parade.
The extreme heat did seem to have an effect on attendance, though. Crowds were relatively light along the parade route this year, particularly in areas without shade, of which there are many along the mall.
The parade featured cultural groups like Gente de Venezuela Philly, whose members waved Venezuelan and American flags; Banda Escolar de Guayanilla, a marching band from Puerto Rico; the Indiana County Fife & Drum Corps, who brought the history in tricorn hats, and the West Powelton Steppers & Drum Squad, who brought the beat in the heat.
Participants pulled wagons featuring small floats of Independence Hall, the LOVE sculpture, and the Liberty Bell, and a historical interpreter portraying John Adams brought up the rear of the procession.
Despite its name, the parade was a living illustration that this country’s true colors aren’t just red, white, and blue — this nation is a diverse tapestry of vibrant, beautiful hues.
Pastor Funmi Obilana of RCCG Church in West Philly stopped to watch the parade with two other members of her congregation on their way to the President’s House Site. The three women were doing a walking tour of their own city Thursday, stopping at places where their ancestors were once enslaved in advance of Independence Day.
“We are here to pray for this city and this nation,” Obilana said. “Two-hundred-and-fifty years is a big number and it should be a new beginning, not only for Philadelphia, but for the nation.”
Christian Greene, 14, and fellow members of the Indiana County Fife and Drum Corps, a music group for 6th-12th grade students in Indiana County, Pennsylvania, wait for their bus back home after the parade ends in front of the YO statue on Thursday, July 2, 2026, in Philadelphia.
Lori Morgan and her three daughters traveled from Seattle to celebrate the Red, White & Blue To-Do in Philly before heading to Boston for July 4th.
“We knew we wanted to do something historic for the 250th so we thought ‘Let’s go to Philadelphia on July 2, since this is where it all happened,” she said.
The family toured Independence Hall Wednesday, and Morgan said it gave them a new perspective on the days and people that led to the founding of our nation.
“We really thought about how when they did the Declaration it was a hot summer and this weather is helping us empathize with what they went through. It was difficult for them with the heat and tempers and they had to pull it together,” Morgan said. “I just think about those men and they all had different ideas, just like we do today, but they knew they couldn’t fail and they had to come together, and they did.”
Dance4Life from Claymont, Del, in Philly’s Red, White & Blue To-Do parade today
Behind Independence Hall Thursday, where the shade was plentiful, National Park Service rangers, colonial reenactors, and independent guides led several large groups on tours and gave information talks.
Lines for both Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell snaked down the sides of their respective buildings. Directly in front of Independence Hall on the mall, FOX Sports appeared to be setting up a large broadcast booth that an employee said will be used for coverage of the July 4th World Cup game in the city.
Philadelphians also got their side hustle on around the mall, selling everything from 250th flags to homemade buttons that read “Make America humane again” and “Deport ICE.”
What state candidates for governor are doing on Independence Day
(use as desired) Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro shakes hand of Stacy Garrity, 78th State Treasurer, Forum Auditorium, Harrisburg, PA, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. Day of her swearing in.
Treasurer Stacy Garrity, the Republican candidate for Pennsylvania governor, will be spending her July Fourth marching in the Susquehanna County parade Saturday, a spokesperson told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Her Democratic opponent, Gov. Josh Shapiro, meanwhile, will appear from sunup to sundown at events throughout the city — as well as frequent television hits.
Shapiro has repeatedly raised concern that President Donald Trump has led the nation astray from its founders’ design and initially announced that Pennsylvania would not take part in Trump’s Great American State Fair, before Pennsylvania’s U.S. senators, Republican Dave McCormick and Democrat John Fetterman, made a push to fill the state’s empty exhibit. Garrity, in a statement, said Shapiro is the “only career politician who has politicized America 250.”
March featuring mayors from across the country heads through Historic District
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker leads bipartisan mayors from communities across the nation in a Historic March of America’s Mayors through the birthplace of American democracy, and past Independence Hall, in Philadelphia, July 2, 2026.
In the sweltering shadeless heat of Independence Mall, more than 100 mayors from small towns and big cities across the country disembarked from coach buses donning large white sashes reading “mayor” and styling various patriotic yet professional sundresses and suits.
After a quick photo opp, the crowd of local leaders made its way down Market Street and turned at Sixth Street at the President’s House.
“Hit the music!” someone from the group joked.
Despite no accompaniment, scorching temperatures, and differing political alignments, the mayors quickly befriended one another, many bonding over a shared connection of a city or state.
“There’s so many Michigan mayors here,” one said. “It’s great to be in the city of brotherly love,” someone else from the group shouted to the spectators.
Visitors along the mall, some beating the heat with portable fans or umbrellas for shade, waved and welcomed them while one man followed them juggling.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker led the charge from the President’s House site to Independence Hall to a collective sigh of relief when the sweat-laden group entered the Museum of the American Revolution for a symposium.
“At a time when too much in our country pulls people apart, mayors have a different responsibility starting with bringing people together,” Parker said. “We share the same mission to serve our people, solve problems and strengthen the communities we are privileged to lead. We fully believe there is no better place for that reminder than Philadelphia because this city tells America’s whole story, no matter how imperfect it may be.”
The National Weather Service sees a 50-50 chance of thunderstorms Saturday night, and some of them may become quite strong.
On Thursday, the federal Severe Storm Prediction Center, in Norman, Okla., increased the probability of severe storms — those with wind gusts up to 60 mph — to 15%.
Forecasters warned that predicting the timing, location, and ferocity of storms would be impossible two days out.
On average, thunderstorms occur every five days in July in Philadelphia, the peak month of the year.
Advocates to host Black Independence Day gathering on Independence Mall on July 4
Avenging The Ancestors Coalition, the advocacy group that pushed to create and maintain the President’s House exhibit memorializing the nine people enslaved by George Washington in his Philadelphia home, will host a Black Independence Day gathering on Independence Mall on July 4.
The event is slated to include reflections on freedom and independence, and an update on the legal battle surrounding the slavery memorial, and a call to action.
As the country celebrates the Founding Fathers’ “righteous battle” against tyranny, it’s important to also acknowledge slavery, said Michael Coard, a coalition founding member.
“You can’t truly love something unless you truly know it,” Coard said. “Until Americans acknowledge and address that bad and especially that ugly, they will never know, and therefore can never love, America.”
The group will meet at the grassy area adjacent to the memorial, which is on the corner of Sixth and Market Streets, at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Philadelphia shipwrights handbuilt a replica of the boat Washington used to cross the Delaware. It’s on display now.
The team at the Seaport Boat Shop at Independence Seaport Museum has built a full-scale replica of the Durham boat — the model of boat George Washington used to cross the Delaware with his Patriot troops on Christmas in 1776.
The boat got its name because it was used to transport iron from Durham Ironworks in Bucks County to Philadelphia. It is on display in Washington Crossing Historic Park.
Two hundred and fifty participants gather to create the Living Liberty Bell to form the shape of the famous bell on Independence Mall adorned in red, white, and blue, at Independence Hall.
Kicking off Red, White & Blue To-Do at 7 a.m. Thursday, 250 people gathered at Liberty Mall to make a “living Liberty Bell.”
(Left to right) McKenzie Kerry, Kate Dimmett, and Reagan Earlywine, stand with other participants who gathered to create the Living Liberty Bell.
Participants wore red, white, and blue (naturally) and included Tess Ferm, Miss America’s Teen from South Carolina, and former city representative Sheila Hess.
Participants gather to create the Living Liberty Bell.
The human formation even captured the bell’s signature crack through an outline of participants wearing blue.
A little later and just down the road, bells rang out at the Betsy Ross House and the official flags rose to signal the beginning of a day’s worth of festivities.
Thursday events include a parade, concert, and drone show
Locals and tourists alike are set to brave 100-degree-plus temperatures to attend the Red, White & Blue To-Do — Philadelphia’s third-annual celebration of the day the Second Continental Congress voted here on July 2, 1776, to adopt a resolution of independence from Great Britain — all day Thursday.
Founding Father John Adams believed July 2 would be celebrated for generations to come with “Pomp and Parade,” but July 4, when Congress approved the Declaration of Independence, got all of the glory and became the day we mark the founding of our country.
Adams’ prognostication in a letter to his wife, Abigail, didn’t come to fruition until 2024, when the Philadelphia Historic District Partners — a coalition of more than 30 institutions, museums, and attractions — heeded his call and created a packed day of festivities across Old City in advance of this year’s Semiquincentennial.
Thursday’s events begin at 7 a.m. with 250 people forming the outline of a “Living Liberty Bell” on Independence Mall and will conclude at 10 p.m. with the “Independence Illumination Drone Show” over the mall.
Highlights include the Red, White & Blue To-Do Pomp & Parade, which begins at 11 a.m. at the National Constitution Center and passes by Independence Hall, and the 8 p.m. Wawa Welcome America Salute to Service concert with Queen Latifah and the United States Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus.
In between, attendees can stop in and cool off at attractions across the city that will host events, like colonial chocolate making at the Betsy Ross House and a scavenger hunt at the Independence Seaport Museum. From 2 to 5 p.m., more than two dozen Philadelphia musicians will perform at 11 locations across the city as part of WXPN Welcomes the Red, White & Blue To-Do Music Series.
Congress to mark 250th anniversary of vote for independence
Historic Interpreter, Lane Norris, as Alexander Hamilton, outside Independence Hall earlier this month.
Members of Congress will gather Thursday at Independence Hall for a ceremonial event to mark the 250th anniversary of the day the Second Continental Congress voted for independence.
U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle, a Philadelphia Democrat whose district includes the historic site, had worked for years to set up a joint session of Congress — an extremely rare occurrence outside Washington, D.C., since 1800 — on the anniversary.
Thursday’s event will not be a formal joint session. But members of both parties will come together in Congress Hall, the room where the legislative branch convened before relocating to Washington.
First, they’ll proceed into the room with lawmakers from the original 13 states entering first, Boyle said in an interview with the Washington-based streaming network 535. Lawmakers will also tour the Liberty Bell and the time capsule set to be buried on July 4, Boyle said.
“It’s no secret that our politics are more polarized today than at any moment in our lifetime. The way the House has been operating in recent years completely reflects that,” Boyle told The Inquirer in a recent interview. “So for us as members of Congress from both parties to come together, put partisanship aside and focus on national unity, I think that’s something that is incredibly positive.”
Organizers are not publicly releasing details about the Congressional gathering, like timing or who’s expected to attend, citing security concerns.
Lightning injuries are rare, but an expert says the Parkway is an especially risky venue on July 4
In the grand casino of the atmosphere, scheduling outdoor events on July Fourth in the Philly region is almost always going to be a rolling of the bones.
And on the day Philadelphia and the rest of the national are holding a mass 250th birthday party, the odds may be dicier than usual, with thunderstorms and accompanying lightning possible Saturday afternoon and night, forecasters say.
July happens to be the peak month for lightning-bearing thunderstorms in Philadelphia, occurring every five days on average, and who doesn’t want to be outside on the Fourth?
As if record-challenging heat and an atmosphere that feels like syrup weren’t enough.
Lightning injuries and fatalities are rare — on average in the last decade, 20 people have been killed annually by lightning in the United States, according to the National Weather Service. But among outdoor events with large crowds across the country, Philly’s July Fourth concert would be among the riskiest for lightning, according to Stephen Strader, disaster specialist at Villanova University.
“It’s way up there, a lot higher than I thought it was,” he said.
Mayor Parker defends decision to host July 4th Parkway concert despite dangerous heat and high price tag
Mayor of Philadelphia Cherelle Parker speaks during a news conference about the July 4 concert.
Mayor Cherelle L. Parker on Wednesday defended the city’s upcoming July Fourth concert, a seven-hour outdoor spectacle featuring performances from Christina Aguilera, Jill Scott and The Roots, amid concerns over the nearly 100-degree forecast and revelations that the event will cost taxpayers millions more than in years past.
The city has dealt with high temperatures before and has battle-tested personnel and protocols prepared for the evening, Parker told reporters at a news conference in front of the stage at the foot of the Philadelphia Museum of Art steps.
She also addressed the detractors head on.
“I do not apologize to anyone about making sure that the city of Philadelphia, as the sixth largest city in the nation, the birthplace of democracy, we were going to have a celebration that is fitting to and for our historical significance and prominence,” Parker said. “One that could be seen, respected and honored not just in our city and commonwealth and nation but in the world.”
Parker described the concert as the largest July Fourth concert in the city’s history. For an occasion as momentous as the nation’s 250th anniversary in the city that bills itself the birthplace of America, Parker said Philadelphia must rise to the occasion and prove it can achieve ambitious undertakings.
Parker said her administration scaled up the experience including moving the stage back to accommodate an estimated 300,000 concertgoers, and made the stage larger.
“We won’t get a second chance to do this over again, Philadelphia,” Parker said. “We only turn 250 years old once in a lifetime.”
