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By LOU HATTER
Rappahannock News Staff Writer
For the people who looked forward to Tuesday’s Independence Day celebration in Washington, the afternoon rain meant merely an early trip home and dinner inside instead of a picnic on the lawn of Avon Hall.
But for the members of Washington’s Volunteer Fire Department, who depend on the event as their only fundraiser of the year, Tuesday afternoon’s downpour was a major disaster.
Chief Roger Roach said that the company “probably barely broke even” on the event, although the final figures were not available Wednesday morning. “We didn’t do well. The weather was an obvious factor.”
Though frustrated by the weather, Chief Roach said he was pleased that the rain stopped long enough for the fireworks display. As he and Mayor Morehouse debated its cancellation Tuesday late afternoon, he repeated several times, “It just isn’t the Fourth of July without fireworks.” In 28 years, he told the mayor, only once had the evening fireworks display been cancelled.
Wednesday morning he added, “I’m just happy the fireworks got off — we had promised everybody that they would.”
Early risers reported rain before dawn Tuesday, but by 8 a.m. it had stopped. Although the skies remained overcast, Chief Roach and the other members of the department were hopeful that the rain would hold off until after the evening program and fireworks. ^
But all the planning went for naught as the skies opened shortly after 3 p.m., depositing a torrential downpour that emptied the town by
94.8%