No Fire, But Lots Of Fun Deer Park Winter Festival Bonfire Wouldn’t Start, But That Didn’t Stop Kids From Having A Great Time

It was a night to be burned at the stake.

If you’re a Christmas tree, that is.

Hundreds of Deer Park residents gathered around a heap of 500 Christmas trees to view the community’s annual bonfire, the kickoff for the 14th annual Winterfest on Friday night.

On the east side of Perrins Field, a stack of trees reached 15 feet into the air. Neighborhood kids had erected a mound of snow that stood just as high as the trees so they could get a front-row view of the blaze.

Firefighters from Station 44 stood guard to monitor the blaze while keeping any potential fire freaks at bay.

But there was just one problem. It was too wet to get the fire started.

“Safety concerns? What safety concerns? This thing won’t catch,” said Lt. Mark Lewis of Station 44. “These trees have been buried in the snow since after Christmas.”

Firefighters would get the fire started from time-to-time, but its power never lasted for very long.

With a dud of a blaze on their hands, the only thing that was left for the kids to do was start a snowball fight.

Justin Roll, Bryan Menzia and Drew Williams used their positions on the snow fortress to bombard their friends down below with snowballs.

“I didn’t come out here for the fire, I came out here for the snowball fight anyway,” Williams said.

A fireworks display did manage to save the remainder of the soggy night. Against the backdrop of a bleak, drizzly and gray sky, the fireworks stole some of the disappointment away.

Eighteen-month-old Lucas Rasmussen sat in Grandma Lois Payne’s arms and squealed with joy at the sight of the rocket’s red glare.

“He just loved his first fourth of July,” said his mother, Christie Rasmussen.

But for now, Lucas will have to wait another year for his first bonfire.

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 3 Color Photos