BOSTON (WHDH) - Crews were busy at the Boston Duck Tours garage in Dorchester Wednesday getting as many as 25 duck boats ready for this week’s Celtics championship parade.
Set for Friday, the parade will be the first through the streets of Boston since 2019 after the Patriots won their sixth Super Bowl.
Still hardly a novel celebration, the parade will be the 13th such duck boat procession since 2002, when the Patriots boarded duck boats for a celebratory trip after their first Super Bowl win.
The Celtics last rode the duck boats in 2008 after their NBA Finals victory that year over the LA Lakers.
The Celtics won their 18th championship on Monday with a Game 5 victory over the Dallas Mavericks. Roughly 12 hours later, players, coaches and staff boarded a plane and headed south to continue their celebrations.
Team officials did not share further details about the Miami trip, but news cameras spotted the team leaving their hotel near 12 p.m. Wednesday. By 3:45 p.m., the team was back on the ground at Hanscom Field in Bedford.
“It was fun,” Mazzulla said of the trip. “We had a good time. We’re glad to be back in Boston.”
Monday’s win touched off a night of celebrations in the streets of Boston and beyond.
With the Celtics now back in town, celebrations are set to continue beginning at 11 a.m. on Friday.
The city’s latest championship parade will step off in front of TD Garden. It will pass City Hall Plaza and the Boston Common on Tremont Street before ending by the Hynes Convention Center on Boylston Street.
Officials discussed parade plans on Tuesday, saying they hope hot weather enveloping the region will let up by the end of the week.
In case the heat lingers, emergency officials shared advice for parade goers.
“As it goes by fixed points, folks can go back about their business, go back inside, go in a store, cool off,” said Boston EMS Chief James Hooley.
“They’re inspiring our whole city through how they come together, how they play, how they support each other, how they’ve handled an amazing season, but one also with such pressure and expectation,” Mayor Michelle Wu said of the Celtics and their 2024 run.
Himself speaking with 7NEWS, Celtics fan Loui Mercadante had a simple message about the parade.
“Get ready for Friday,” he said. “We’re gonna be loud.”
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