The Rise of Fireworks Bans
Growing up, my friends and I did some stupid things with fireworks but many of us GenXer’s did; there was no supervision in the 1980’s! NONE! Let’s just say my friend’s sister’s Barbie car met its fate when some lit M-80’s were left in it (retaliation for a decapitated He-Man incident). I’m sure many of us from the 1980’s have similar stories.
I was talking with my brother yesterday about the MANY jurisdictions that are prohibiting illegal fireworks - firecrackers, M-80's, skyrockets and bottle rockets - and why these bans continue to increase more and more and what if one decides to ignore these laws?
In my first jurisdiction, I built and ran the fire prevention program under the mentoring of the Building Official. A wedding was planned at a nearby property (a hotel/bed and breakfast) and they wanted fireworks so they needed a permit. It was quite a while ago so I don’t recall every detail but what these trained professionals had to do seemed significant to hold a small fireworks event but there are reasons for these steps and precautions. There are reasons you must have a planned, safe and monitored fallout area; there are reasons spectators must be a certain distance away from the launching platform and fallout area; there are reasons no fireworks can be launched within a certain distance of a building; there are reasons you have fire service personnel and paramedics nearby; and so much more.
More and more jurisdictions are banning these types of fireworks due to potential for wildfires but also to mitigate fire issues on residential properties and to lessen the number of injuries.
However, also be aware that unfortunate events can happen with the legally sold fireworks, such as fountains. For example, one year our Cocker Spaniel went after an active fountain, grabbed it and turned it sideways and she came to see… dad (while dad was running away - just like something you’d see on AFV, I’m sure). So, even with those fireworks that are less dangerous, issues can arise.
The big question: what happens if someone does not follow these laws? Nothing will likely happen on/around July 4th and you may get lucky this year but, as you can see in my example above, even carefully planned events can see elements of it go sideways (literally). The repercussions for causing a fire, incident or worse will find you.
Some have, selfishly, placed more importance on seeing their own pretty "booms" in the air over the safety of their communities instead of finding safe locations to watch them by trained professionals (there may be a jurisdiction holding an event on July 4th that you can attend). You are welcome to disagree with me but there are fires on properties every year, due to fireworks, as well as injuries (ask Jason Pierre Paul - this hurt his career) and 9 times out of 10 it is because people do not fully understand what they can do. Even trained professionals can run into issues.
I’m not going to share statics or figures, of which there are many. I’m sharing what I know about this, personally and professionally, in the hopes I might convince you to forgo your own fireworks display (unless you’re buying legal fireworks) and instead consider attending a professionally held and supported event. Also, it is less work and will save you some money.