Crowds are building along Sydney Harbour ahead of tonight’s fireworks spectacular

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Crowds are building along Sydney harbour ahead of tonight’s fireworks spectacular, which is expected to be viewed by tens of millions of people around the world. It comes as more than two-and-a-half thousand police officers prepare to be deployed across the city's main viewing areas in the wake of the Bondi Terror attack. Reporter Fiona Willan has the details from Mrs Macquarie’s chair in Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens.

Transcript

00:00Well, Jeba, there is a very relaxed atmosphere here right now.

00:05People are taking naps in the sun, they're having picnics with friends to pass the time.

00:09There are 53 vantage points around the harbour and this is considered one of the best.

00:13This area can fit around 10,000 people and it reached capacity just before midday,

00:18so less than two hours after the gates opened at 10am.

00:22That's when we saw people scrambling to get a good spot.

00:25Some of them had been here since the very early hours of the morning queuing up.

00:29Now, they'll be here tonight as nine tonnes of fireworks are set off from city locations,

00:34including of course the harbour bridge and the Opera House, as well as six buildings in the city

00:38and platforms on the harbour and there's certainly a lot of excitement over what's to come.

00:44It's definitely a bucket list moment, so I wanted to experience that for a year now

00:50since I knew I was going to come to Sydney.

00:54It's just like a once in a lifetime experience.

00:57Like, I'm never going to be here again and watch the fireworks.

01:00So, it's going to be great.

01:02It will be a long wait.

01:03It will be a lot of chatting around, a lot of sitting around,

01:06grabbing something to eat, to drink and then looking forward to the end.

01:10And fee security has been ramped up in the wake of the Bondi attack.

01:17Yes, Gemma, there will be record numbers of police out and about today.

01:21We're told 3,000 in the Sydney metropolitan area alone and some of them will be carrying long-arm rifles.

01:27Now, that's not something you would usually see in Australia, but the police commissioner made a special request

01:32for some officers to be able to wear those weapons outwardly.

01:35He says this doesn't represent an increased risk to the public.

01:38Rather, it's about making people feel safe in the wake of the attack.

01:42The Premier, Chris Minns, has admitted that he is concerned that numbers will be down tonight,

01:47but he's urging people to get out and about and enjoy their lives.

01:52We can't be in a situation where this horrible criminal terrorist event changes the way we live in our beautiful city.

02:00We have to show defiance in the face of this terrible crime

02:04and say that we're not going to be cowered by this kind of terrorism

02:09and we're not going to change the way we live our life in our beautiful city.

02:13And tonight there will be a special tribute to the victims of the Bondi attack.

02:16At 11pm, the harbour bridge will be lit up in white

02:20and an image of a menorah will be projected onto the pylons

02:23as the crowd observes a minute of silence, Gemma.

02:26Fiona Willen there, Mrs Macquarie's chair in Sydney. Thank you.

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