Firework sales stay legal in south county, even if you can’t light them

Published 1:30 am Thursday, July 27, 2023

EVERETT — The Snohomish County Council took no action last week on a proposed ban on firework sales in areas where lighting them off is prohibited.

Despite bans on fireworks in unincorporated parts of the county, they can still be bought. Proponents of firework bans also point to their risk of injuries and, especially in rural areas, their potential to start a serious fire.

“I’m interested in broadening this ordinance to look at a countywide ban on the sale and use given a number of things,” County Council member Strom Peterson said at the July 18 meeting. “Constituent and other complaints about firework usage this year (and) working with the South County Fire department and their concerns.”

Of the 34 fireworks stands permitted by Snohomish County this year, half were in the Southwest Urban Growth Area where fireworks use is banned, said Leslie Hynes, spokesperson for South County Fire, in an email.

“South County Fire has been in contact with County Council members to support efforts to ban the sale of fireworks in the area of southwest Snohomish County where their use is banned,” Hynes wrote. “All of our unincorporated service area falls within the ban area.”

At the meeting, Bill Lider, an engineer from Lynnwood, pleaded with the council to pass the new ban.

“A majority of county residents voted to ban fireworks, please listen to your constituents,” Lider said. “It is the height of hypocrisy for the county to allow the sale but not the use of fireworks in my neighborhood. If you continue to allow the sale of fireworks, they will be used.”

Fireworks are a contentious issue in Snohomish County.

In a 2019 advisory vote, about 56% of voters approved a fireworks ban in the Southwest Urban Growth Area. Following the nonbinding vote, the County Council unanimously passed the ban.

South County Fire hasn’t responded to any serious structure fires in the unincorporated growth area since the ban went into effect in December 2020.

The department also reported fewer injuries from fireworks as well.

Historically, both state and local laws on fireworks have changed frequently. From 1943 to 1951, it was generally illegal for the public to have fireworks under state law. In 1951, fireworks were legalized, then again banned six years later in Snohomish County.

Local law changed again in 1986 and made fireworks legal. After the 2019 vote, the law did not make selling in those areas illegal — only the act of lighting them off.

One of the busiest days of the year for police and fire departments is the Fourth of July. Emergency management agencies often ask the public to avoid calling 911 on those shooting off fireworks unless there is an injury or fire.

This year, SNO911 fielded 2,808 calls for emergency service and 1,595 calls for non-emergency service on July 4 — an increase of 500 emergency calls and 300 non-emergency calls from the year prior. Service peaked at nearly 400 calls in an hour, according to county data.

There were 68 brush fires from July 3 to 5. County data does not specify which ones were caused by fireworks.

Penalties up to $500 can be levied for discharge of fireworks, but they are rarely given. That’s partly due to a requirement that an officer be present during firework discharge to document the offense, a county staff report found. According to the same report, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office received 932 complaints about fireworks last year.

Only seven ended in warnings.

Deputies issued zero tickets.

“Most complaints result in an officer patrolling the area, sometimes talking to people who are present, but only occasionally do sheriffs issue a written warning,” Ryan Countryman, a senior legislative analyst with the county, told the council last week.

A patchwork of fireworks laws cover Snohomish County as well as its various cities and towns. In some cities, for example, fireworks are illegal to light off for all but a brief time around the Fourth of July.

County code allows for emergency restrictions on firework use, but the authority is limited to the county fire marshal, who can only enact those bans in periods of extreme fire danger.

Since the Fourth of July, several large fires have started across the state. Washington is entering the peak of its wildfire season, state fire meteorologist Matthew Dehr told reporters Tuesday.

“I do think that we’re going to continue to see large fires crop up across the landscape, at least with with more significant fire danger,” he said.

Dehr said the state has seen few lightning-caused fires so far this year.

“I think the biggest thing for us that we’ve seen this year is that we’re seeing more fires on the west side (of the Cascade Range) earlier in the season, which doesn’t bode well for us,” Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz said Tuesday.

“Conditions in our state over the last week have been some of the worst we’ve experienced this year,” Franz added. “I am urging people to please do their part and support our heroic firefighters by being one less spark out on the landscape.”

Jordan Hansen: 425-339-3046; jordan.hansen@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @jordyhansen.