Alaskan city orders LED lights

An Alaskan city has purchased thousands of LED lights for its annual Christmas festival.

Since last year the residents of North Pole have turned out to celebrate the Christmas in Ice event.

This year the city has replaced its traditional incandescent bulbs with LED lights.

Some 11,000 of the innovative bulbs will be used to decorate the city’s 65-foot high Christmas tree.

Visitors to the area can see the lights being switched on in a special ceremony scheduled for next week.

The use of LED lighting means that the Christmas tree can be lit up for longer because the bulbs use less energy.

John Poirrier, chairperson of the event, said: “We really want to have a more vibrant display for the second annual Christmas in Ice festival.

“We wanted to save money on electricity as well; that’s why we decided to go with the LEDs”.

A host of events have been scheduled for the festival including ice carving and a firework display.