An 18-minute nightworks display in San Diego shot up in about 15 seconds Wednesday, after a glitch ignited all the pyrotechnics at once.

About five minutes before the Port of San Diego’s Big Bay Boom was to begin at 9 p.m., spectators saw a brilliant display of fireworks that shot up in only 15 seconds – an incredible disappointment to hundreds of thousands of spectators who had waited for hours for the 18-minute show.

The Big Bay Boom is advertised as one of the largest fireworks shows in the nation.

Local boosters boast about attracting half a million spectators. The pyrotechnics are launched from five barges in the San Diego Bay.