40-foot rubber duck arrives in Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH (AP) – A 40-foot tall yellow rubber duck has arrived in Pittsburgh to open an arts festival.
The duck is the idea of Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman. A downtown bridge has been closed to vehicles and is filled with parents, children, and vendors for a welcome party.
Various versions of the duck have made a splash in harbors from Hong Kong to Sao Paulo since 2007. The duck’s arrival marks the start of the Pittsburgh International Festival of Firsts. The duck will be moored near Pittsburgh’s two major league sports stadiums until late October.
Each city builds its own duck, and the whole project includes massive pontoons, crews to inflate and deflate the duck, and in Pittsburgh, alerting the Coast Guard to the unusual maritime creation.