Illegal fireworks keep Contra Costa fire crews hustling on July 4
ANTIOCH -- The evening of July 4 was a busy one for the Contra Costa Fire Protection District. The department usually expects 30 to 40 vegetation fires in the county in the span of a few hours during the holiday.
Before night fell, it was easy to hear and see illegal fireworks light up the sky in Antioch which is one of the county's hotspots on Independence Day. Fireworks are banned in Contra Costa County.
"Bay Point, Pittsburg, Antioch and to the edge of Brentwood is where we usually see a lot of our fires. Part of that is because this area is a little drier," said Assistant Chief Chris Bachman.
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Among the over 20 fires crews responded to in the 10 p.m. hour alone was a structure fire that seriously damaged a two-story home on the 1500 block of Fieldcrest Drive in Pleasant Hill.
KPIX reporter Betty Yu joined Bachman on a ride-along as he responded to numerous calls Tuesday. Con Fire had extra crews working during peak hours.
On the way to the first call of the night, firefighters spotted several illegal fireworks shows popping off along the highway.
The region has many dry, grassy areas which have officials concerned about fires and injuries. Luckily, weather conditions were somewhat favorable this year.
"This nice, cool, kind of wet, humid weather -- so it's a little windy so, if it does start, it will still spread but the humidity and the cool weather's definitely helping," Bachman said.
Fire investigators were also busy patroling and confiscating illegal fireworks. Violators could face fines.
During the first hour of the ride-along about eight calls came in. Suddenly, fire crews responded to nine calls at the same time within a 10-minute period at around 10 p.m.
"What you're seeing now with the number of calls that we're running is pretty common with how they usually come in year after year," Bachman said. "It'll stay at this pace until usually 11:30, 12 o' clock."
