Leave Fireworks to Certified Professionals
More fires are reported on our nation’s birthday, July 4th, than on any other day in the United States. In 2012, U.S. hospital emergency rooms saw an estimated 8,600 people for fireworks-related injuries, according to the National Fire Protection Association.
“This Fourth of July, enjoy the neighborhood parades, the backyard barbeques and community fireworks displays, recognizing that sparklers, fountains and other novelties accounted for 43% of U.S. emergency room fireworks injuries in 2010,” said Champaign Fire Chief Douglas Forsman.
In the City of Champaign:
- Only novelty fireworks: snake or glow worm pellets, smoke devices, trick noisemakers, sparklers, toy pistols, canes or gun devices in which paper or plastic caps containing twenty-five hundredths grains or less of explosive compound are allowed for sale and/or use. The Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal’s Fireworks Use Act expressly excludes novelty fireworks from their definition of Consumer Fireworks, 425 ILCS 35/1 Section 3.4.
- NO Class C or Division 1.4 fireworks are allowed for sale or use. This category of fireworks includes handheld fireworks, bottle rockets, firecrackers of any size or type, roman candles and other items described on the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal website, http://www.sfm.illinois.gov/commercial/pyrotechnicsfireworks/index.aspx.
- The City of Champaign Municipal Code Ordinance on Fireworks was adopted by City Council in 1985 and amended in 1999.