City leaders cracking down on illegal fireworks as Fourth of July approaches
With just two weeks until the Fourth of July, city leaders are already cracking down on those who choose to shoot off illegal fireworks.
Last year, illegal fireworks exploded all across Los Angeles. While for some, the temptation to put on their own display is back, fire, police and city officials are once again urging people to resist.
"We're going to either be citing or arresting people that are either in possession of and, in particular, using fireworks, especially in a high fire, high severity zone," said LAPD Deputy Chief Allen Hamilton of the Valley Bureau.
City leaders issued the warning in a Sun Valley neighborhood, where illegal fireworks caused a fire on Independence Day two years ago. The ongoing drought combined with the heat and parched terrain is why both neighbors and firefighters are concerned.
"These hillsides are ripe for wildfire. So, one less spark is going to be one less wildfire," LAFD Capt. Erik Scott said.
Sun Valley resident Sweta Bhakata agreed.
"It's definitely scary. We all the fires, all these homes getting burned down all the time," she said.
In addition to the fire danger, medics typically respond to over 400 additional emergency calls around the Fourth of July. Not only that, illegal fireworks can be traumatizing for children with autism, veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and countless pets that run away from home.
"It's one of the most common complaints we receive in our office from neighborhoods traumatized by the noise, who are put at risk because of the fire danger," LA City Councilman Paul Krekorian, who represents District 2, said.
"It's important to think too that illegal fireworks are responsible for thousands of injuries and sending thousands of people to the emergency room each year and, tragically, 40% of these are children," Capt. Scott added.
The City Attorney's Office also said that it's targeting several social media marketplaces, like Facebook and Craigslist, to help make it tougher to purchase fireworks online.
"In those cease and desist letters, we're demanding that they never post and fi they find them, take down any advertisement for fireworks directed to people here in the city of LA," City Attorney Mike Feuer said.
Officials said the best way for people to safely enjoy a fireworks show is to leave it up to the professionals.
The city is also holding a fireworks buyback program on July 2, at Brand Park in Mission Hills. People can turn in illegal fireworks and receive a gift card in return.
