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The Saaremaa municipal government has decided not to hold an official New Year’s fireworks display on the island this year. This decision is a growing trend in Estonia, with a number of other municipalities also deciding to remove fireworks from their New Year programs. According to <\/span>Saaremaa deputy Mayor Koit Vooj\u00e4rv, <\/span>“the coronavirus situation has escalated around the world, there are many signs of danger, and that is one of the reasons for why Saaremaa municipality government decided against organizing a fireworks show this year.”<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n As a result of this decision being made so close to New Year, the local government did not have any alternative ideas for the celebrations. This has not stopped a number of Orissaare residents who have already started to create ice sculptures \u2013 with 3 already on display in Orissaare. In the opinion of sculptor Elo Liiv, the ice sculptures create “a similar ‘wow’-effect to fireworks<\/i>. Going on to add that “you could use sound and lighting equipment too, which many Estonian cities already do.”<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n