HARRISBURG, Pa. — Thousands of people spent Independence Day in Harrisburg.
“It’s nice to see the city interacting with one another, everybody is in a good mood," said Dakota Lee of Mt. Gretna. "It's cool."
Annie Sherrill was in the area from Charlotte, North Carolina, visiting her sister who lives in Carlisle.
The two enjoyed a hot but sunny summer day at the city's annual Fourth of July Festival.
“[It's] beautiful, under the shade with a little breeze, overlooking the water, nothing to complain about today," said Sherrill.
Food trucks of all kinds lined up along Front Street, serving up all kinds of dishes to thousands of hungry people.
“I’m actually quite blown away by the number of options so I’m ready to fill myself up with lots of food," said Sherrill.
The city expected upwards of 50,000 people to filter in and out throughout Tuesday afternoon and evening.
It's one of its biggest events of the year.
“There are a lot of hands that help put this together," said Cortney Ranck-Cameron, special events manager for the City of Harrisburg. "We have our events team that works months in advance getting applications out, coordinating the details, where tents need to go, where trucks are going, all those things.”
And when they see the smiles on visitors’ faces, organizers say the hard work is all worth it.
“I look around and see people having a good time and enjoying themselves. Not even just the attendees, but the vendors too," said Ranck-Cameron. "These are small businesses. This is a huge day for them, especially our food trucks.”
The festival runs until 9:00 Tuesday night.
The city's fireworks display is set to start shortly after.
Download the FOX43 app here.