Big crowd has a blast

THE Seafire fireworks festival drew 35,000 people to Surfers Paradise on Saturday night after it was postponed in the wake of ex-Cyclone Debbie.

Surfers Paradise Alliance CEO Mike Winlaw said attendance was up by 5000 people on last year and ‘we were not at all affected by having to reschedule’.

“It’s building a following, especially with the drive market,” Mr Winlaw said.

“A lot of people are coming from Brisbane and accommodation providers are telling us that people are staying the night.

“We have a real opportunity to turn this into something people come to the Gold Coast for every year.”