Tree Lighting Snafu, Santa Needs Extra Fairy Dust to Light Grand Junction’s Tree

There was a snafu at the annual tree lighting in downtown Grand Junction, and Santa Claus needed some extra fairy dust to get the tree to light.

I have to say, the weather was less than ideal for the tree lighting. First the wind, and then the rain. Cold followed soon after.

Still, hundreds of people turned out to see the lighting of the tree, and the holiday lights in downtown Grand Junction lit up for the first time this holiday season. Shannon Castaneda warmed up the cold, damp crowd with some great Christmas music before Santa's arrival.

Due to the inclement weather, Santa was unable to land on the roof of Wells Fargo Bank, but instead was forced to land at the Grand Junction Fire Station. The Grand Junction Fire Department then chauffeured Santa to 4th and Main, and then helped him reach the roof via firetruck ladder.

When it was time for Santa to light the tree, a toss of the magical Christmas fairy dust resulted in all of downtown Grand Junction lighting up beautifully - all except the big tree.

Of course, Santa has never been one to be easily deterred and offered to try one more time. This time, with the crowd counting down, Santa was able to light the tree and the holiday season was underway.

According to Townsquare Media's Ed Chandler, who has emceed the tree lighting for almost as long as there has been a Santa Claus, the official reason for the tree lighting misfire was the weather. Ed says the wind caught the magical dust and blew all of it over to Main Street and none of it got on the  Christmas tree.

It's also possible that Santa was just "toying" with us - lighting Main Street first, and then the tree.

In the end, the tree was lit, the kids got to see Santa, and many of the kids got treats from the Grand Junction Firefighters.