With the 4th of July just around the corner, officials are on high alert for people using fireworks illegally. Fireworks may be traditional for the holiday, but with our hot, dry conditions, firefighters are saying to leave them to the professionals.
And it's not just what you'd generally think of as fireworks. The ban includes even the small consumer firecrackers like Roman candles, bottle rockets, even sparklers.
"A sparkler at the tip when it's lit gets up to 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit," Sparks Fire Department Fire Marshal Bob King said. "That is enough to give you third degree burns. Glass melts at 900 degrees Fahrenheit. That shows you how hot that little tiny sparkler is. It will cause fires out in our wildland area."
King said sometimes people are confused because these consumer fireworks are available in some places locally. But lighting them in our area is illegal because of the fire danger.
According to King, nationwide, consumer fireworks cause about $20 million in damage every year in July. But it is not just property damage that is a cause for concern. Firecrackers can also be very dangerous for the people using them, like an incident with a small child in Sparks two years ago.
"A young child was playing with a firecracker inside the house, lit it, tried to get it outside, and didn't make it," King said. "It ended up blowing off three quarters of his hand."
King said police are on high alert this month, and person caught lighting them could face a $1,000 fine, a night in jail, and a misdemeanor charge that will stay on a criminal record. And of course that's not counting liability for any fire damage that they could cause.
For more information on fireworks safety, click here.
Written by Arianna Bennett
