Hundreds of spectators gathered on Front Street this evening to witness a Bermuda first — a futuristic fireworks display in which the pyrotechnics were replaced by masses of brightly coloured drones.

The light show was held to mark the opening of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship golf tournament, which tees off at Port Royal Golf Course this morning.

The event was delayed for almost an hour by strong winds and occasional showers. But that temporary setback only intensified the anticipation of those who had braved the elements.

After finally getting approval for take-off, about 250 drones were launched from the grounds of the Hamilton Princess just before 9.30pm.

What followed was a 15-minute light show that drew gasps from the crowd.

Hovering high over Hamilton Harbour, the synchronised drones painted a series of brightly coloured images to illustrate the upcoming golf tournament.

Danielle Carrera, the tournament director, had said that the display was planned as part of a welcome for those taking part in the golf championship, but was also “part of our ongoing efforts to bring fresh, new community initiatives to the tournament”.

That effort appeared to have paid off.

Sarah Roberts, 12, from Paget, said: “I thought it was spectacular. I’ve never seen anything like that before. It was well worth the wait.”

Tourist Darel McRay was also impressed by what he saw.

Mr McRay, 41, from Ontario, Canada, is visiting the island with his wife, Michelle, on the Norwegian Breakaway cruise ship.

He said: “It’s great — really cool. We went out of our way to make our way to Hamilton from Dockyard tonight to see the show. It really is like fireworks.”

Some viewers did express disappointment that Front Street was not the best vantage point to see the show, but enjoyed the event anyway.

One man, who asked not to be named, said: “It said in the newspaper that this was the best place to watch it, but I think we would have been better off on Pitts Bay Road.

“From where we were, we could only really see it in profile, side-on. It was difficult to make out what the images were.

“But a lot of people came out. We are all excited to see something like this in Bermuda for the first time, and we’ve had a good night.

“It’ll be nice to have it again, like New Year’s Day or something like that.”

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