HONG KONG – Fireworks have always been a highlight of Hong Kong’s New Year festivities. However, this year will be different.

As 2026 approaches, the city will forgo its usual dazzling fireworks display over Victoria Harbor, a decision made in light of a tragic fire in November that claimed at least 161 lives.

In place of the pyrotechnics, the tourism board has organized a musical event for Wednesday night, featuring the soft rock duo Air Supply and other performers. This event will take place in Central, a bustling business district also known for its vibrant nightlife at Lan Kwai Fong. Eight iconic landmarks will transform into giant countdown timers, culminating in a three-minute light show at midnight.

Traditionally, fireworks have been integral to celebrations in Hong Kong, marking events like the New Year, Lunar New Year, and National Day. These displays, set against the backdrop of Hong Kong’s renowned skyscraper skyline, usually attract hundreds of thousands of locals and tourists alike to the harbor’s edges.

Rosanna Law, the secretary for culture, sports, and tourism, admitted on Tuesday that the absence of fireworks could impact some hotels and restaurants economically.

The financial hub’s worst blaze since 1948 broke out at Wang Fuk Court, in the northern suburban district of Tai Po, in late November. The apartment complex was undergoing a monthslong renovation project with buildings covered by bamboo scaffolding and green netting.

Authorities have pointed to the substandard netting and foam boards installed on windows as contributing factors in the fire’s rapid spread. Thousands of affected residents have moved to transitional homes, hotels and youth hostels, struggling to recover from the loss of lives and homes that took them years to buy. The casualties pained many residents across the city.

Past tragedies in Hong Kong have forced similar cancellations of fireworks. They include the 2013 National Day festivities following a vessel collision that killed 39 people on Oct. 1, 2012, and the 2018 Lunar New Year celebration after a bus crash that left 19 dead. During the 2019 anti-government protests and the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple displays also were scrapped.

The origin of fireworks is believed to date to China in the second century B.C., when someone discovered bamboo stalks exploded with loud bangs when thrown into fire, creating the first natural “firecrackers,” according to the American Pyrotechnics Association, a U.S. trade group.

The Guinness World Records organization says the first accurately documented firework, the Chinese firecracker, was created by Li Tian, a monk from China’s Tang dynasty dating to around 618 to 907 C.E. Li discovered that putting gunpowder in enclosed hollow bamboo stems created loud explosions and bound crackers together to create the traditional New Year firecrackers to drive out evil spirits, Guinness said.