LAUDERDALE-BY-THE-SEA, Fla. – Fourth of July celebrations have kicked off across South Florida, including the annual Fourth of July parade in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea.
"It's a tradition. We've done this four years in a row and we're looking forward to it again," Scott Bursa said.
With Uncle Sam and Lady Liberty on stilts, a giant Flanigan's fish and the grand marshal led the way for the annual parade.
"Great turnout, beautiful weather -- thank the meteorologist for that," Broward County Commissioner Chip LaMarca said.
The Lauderdale-by-the-Sea event has water slides, fire truck demonstrations, hot dogs and lemonade.
Fireworks will be launched at 9 p.m.
Meanwhile, preparations began early Tuesday for a massive celebration at Bayfront Park.
Bayfront Park's Independence Day event is not only a signature party each year, it is also a living, breathing example of what America is made of, as the cultural mosaic that is South Florida gathers at water's edge to celebrate common threads.
While the weather wasn't as nice in Miami as it was in Lauderdale-by-the-Sea, people said the rain wasn't going to stop them from celebrating.
"I don't think the rain will stop anybody," Joey Arias said. "If you're patriotic and you love the fireworks and family, and just what today stands for, nothing will stop you, and that's what it's all about."
More people turned up at Bayfront Park later in the day, including a woman who Miami-Dade Fire Rescue officials said got injured when a coconut fell on her head.
Local 10 News was at the scene as the woman was taken away on a stretcher with a neck brace on.
Authorities said she was taken as a trauma alert to Jackson Memorial Hospital with a head injury.