Festival farewelled in style

Caitriona Murtagh

Monday, September 22, 2008

Dozens of spectacular floats and showers of fireworks have thrilled bumper crowds lining the Esplanade for the Festival Cairns finale parade.

See more photos of the Parade of Lights.

This year's Parade of Lights - the event's 42nd - drew more onlookers than ever before on Saturday night, organiser Narell Black said.

"It was just crazy stuff," Ms Black said.

"We know last year and the year before we had 22,000.

"There would easily have been 8000 more, I reckon."

Click here for more Festival Cairns picture galleries.

Ms Black, who watched the parade atop a cherry-picker stationed at the corner of Shields St and the Esplanade, said there were "miles and miles" of floats.

"We had fantastic silver walking stars with kids in them, teenagers, which was just sensational."

Papua New Guinea's palm frond-covered float was also a standout.

"They had young boys doing the dance with older guys, it was full-on energy," she said.

"I don't know how the judges would've picked out who won.’’

Visit Festival Cairns site.

To end the night huge red love heart fireworks rained down from the sky.

"He's interspersed them, staggering them so you got them going up and up and up," Ms Black said.

"They'd just be going up and the next one would come down."

Feel like dancing: Dancers in traditional costumes gave the Parade of Lights a multicultural flavour as an impressive float followed them down the Esplanade.

<strong>What the:</strong> Phill was so horrified to see this blatant display of risky riding on Hoare St, Manunda, yesterday, he snapped this picture with the hope of knocking some sense into the cyclist.

No hands, helmet or brains

THIS snap of a young woman holding a toddler as she rode a bike down the wrong way of a busy Manunda street is enough to make anyone cringe. more

<strong>Let out: </strong>Garri Douglas Knight leaves the Cairns police watchhouse after being released from custody.

Sex predator released

A CHILD sex predator caught taking photos of a nine-year-old girl at the Cairns Esplanade Lagoon also had a stash of child porn and convictions for indecent acts.
more

<strong>Cannot believe it:</strong> Fay Mammone was devastated by the death of her husband Peter.

Widow's grief over penalty

FAY Mammone is ready to meet - and maybe even forgive - the teenage motorist whose careless driving killed her fun-loving husband, who would have turned 40 today. more

<strong>In custody:</strong> Notorious fraud suspect John Arthur Edwards could face more than 30 criminal charges when he is eventually brought back to Cairns.

Con suspect caught

NOTORIOUS fraud suspect John Arthur Edwards could face more than 30 criminal charges when he is eventually brought back to Cairns. more

<strong>In court:</strong> Closing pubs in Cape York indigenous communities would be racist and un-Australian, a Cairns court has heard. Kids at Aurukun stand under a sign displaying alcohol management rules.

Cops fear pub grog ban

CLOSING pubs in Cape York indigenous communities would be racist and un-Australian, a Cairns court has heard. more

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