On Fireworks

The Tucson area is filled with tons of fireworks stands; even the grocery stores have displays of fireworks available for sale. There’s even a “discount fireworks” tent on a vacant lot next to a road I frequently drive on.
However, the actual use of retail fireworks (as opposed to the big stuff used by professionals in approved displays) is prohibited in the city of Tucson. Indeed, many cities and counties prohibit the use of fireworks, as they’re enormous fire risks. Same thing with all Federal lands within the state borders (e.g. National Forests, National Parks, BLM land, etc.).
Nevertheless, business as the fireworks stands appears to be going gangbusters as people stock up for the Fourth of July celebrations.
It’s 103F outside now with 16% humidity (it was 108F yesterday and 8%). Combined with it being incredibly hot and dry, there’s already several huge wildfires raging in the state, so firefighting resources are occupied with combating these fires. All we need now is some idiot to inadvertently set some new fire with his fireworks.
Yes, the Fourth of July is traditionally celebrated with fireworks, but buying (and presumably using) fireworks with the current weather and fire conditions seems like an enormously stupid thing to do.
I hope people are responsible, use their fireworks in appropriate areas, and have suitable means of quickly extinguishing any resulting fires quickly and completely.

2 thoughts on “On Fireworks”

  1. To be fair, I must point out that consumer fireworks that launch into the air (bottle rockets, Roman candles and the like) are apparently still illegal in Arizona. (This prevents the lawful use of most of the fireworks I enjoyed while living in my native state of Missouri. ~shrug~ C’est la vie.) Sparklers, fountains and the like have a fairly small radius of effect, from which responsible users ought to remove any easily-ignited materials. FWIW, I have never seen a fireworks fountain set a sheet of plywood on fire, and that’s what we used as a fountain platform at my home in Missouri (we put it on a wheelbarrow to elevate it for best viewing).

  2. Of course, the fact that monsoon season has arrived in the Sorry Vista area with great enthusiasm (three straight days of rain in or around Sierra Vista) affects my assessment of the risks of using ground-based fireworks…. 😉

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