Final preparations underway for 4th of July festivities in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO - San Francisco's 4th of July fireworks show is on. 

The city is celebrating the reopening of its waterfront, and after more than a year of relative quiet, the waterfront is bustling, and events are planned for this weekend and all the way out to October.

San Francisco is preparing for the holiday along the waterfront this weekend. With the return of the signature fireworks show, the city is getting ready for an influx of visitors. Fireworks will be set off Sunday at 9:30 a.m. 

"Our goal is to make sure that people have a good time and keep everyone safe, especially during the 4th of July," said San Francisco Mayor London Breed. "We know people are going to be excited to come to San Francisco and see fireworks."

With the lifting of restrictions and the holiday taking place on a weekend, the waterfront is anticipating big crowds. 

"This could be our biggest year yet," said Randall Scott from the Fisherman's Wharf Community Benefit District. "Because of that pent-up demand, and it's hard to gauge just how many people. We typically see, inaccurate data, but, 80,000. We figure well over 100,000 this year."

The Meyer family visiting from Washington DC Is already planning on attending the big show. 

"Oh yeah, super excited," said Derrick Meyer. "We heard about it from DC. One of the reasons we came out, can't wait to see it, can't wait to see what kind of fireworks they have, super loud and super exciting. We're just so ready for it."

And the 4th of July celebration is just the beginning of fun on the waterfront. 

The city is also highlighting the return of Fleet Week. 

The sea and air show were canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, now the event will be returning in October. "We're bringing ships, we're bringing aircraft, we're bringing equipment," said Rear Admiral Wayne Baze. "We are going to bring the Navy Blue Angels. I think everybody's heard of them."

The city is hoping that visitors make this weekend a memorable one, with the return of the Exploratorium. The museum shut down for more than a year, and visitors are already making reservations and visiting in person.