Dangerous Toys

As hundreds of fires continued to burn in Northern and Central California and the air in Ventura County remained dense with residual smoke from the fires, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger warned residents against using any fireworks, including those approved by the state Fire Marshall.

The governor said it is just too risky.

Local fire experts heartily agree.

“We believe that so-called ‘safe’ and ‘sane’ fireworks are neither,” Ventura County Fire Department spokesman Bill Nash said. “They are explosive devices, and they are very dangerous.”

Nash was talking about the “safe” and “sane” designation on small fireworks indicating an official thumbs-up from the state. The use and sale of these fireworks is banned in every jurisdiction in Ventura County with the exception of the City of Fillmore. And there’s the rub.

Route 126 in Fillmore was dotted with 23 identical canvas booths, most sporting large American flags flapping in the wind, and all were loaded with brightly colored packages resembling toys bearing names like Glittering Jewels, Block Party and American Spirit. For some parents, buying the fireworks is a family event, even those with very small children in tow.

The groups selling the fireworks have different objectives. Some said they plow all of the funds back into their own organization. Others use the money to purchase sports equipment for local schools. Others said they donate all of the proceeds to charities.

Bill Edmonds of the Fillmore Lion’s Club said the organization heavily relies on the sale of fireworks.

“This is our primary fundraiser for the year,” Edmonds said.

Only Fillmore-based organizations are permitted to sell the fireworks. All of the sales are controversial.

As such, volunteers manning the Fillmore Search and Rescue booth strenuously refused to speak on the record, possibly sensitive to how the sale of fireworks by an offshoot of law enforcement might be construed.

Fillmore Mayor Steve Conaway said the fireworks sold by the nonprofit groups legally bear the seal of the state Fire Marshall and are not hazardous, unlike other fireworks.

“If it shoots into the air or explodes, it is illegal,” Conaway said referring to the legal definition of illegal fireworks.
But even the “legal” fireworks are illegal to use outside of Fillmore. Conaway said his official responsibility only goes so far.

“We encourage everyone who buys ‘safe’ and ‘sane’ fireworks in Fillmore to use them in Fillmore,” Conaway said. “As a city, we do not have authority to enforce laws outside of our city limits.”

Customer Hector Morales knows the drill, having purchased fireworks before. He said he likes all of them.

“I really don’t have a preference, I just grab what looks good, an assortment,” Morales said. “I’m not sure where I will be using these. That’s a secret.”

The problem is not that customers are unaware of the hefty fines for using fireworks illegally. There are state-mandated signs posted on each booth explaining the laws. Local fire experts agreed that all fireworks are inherently dangerous.

First, there is the enormous and obvious issue of brush fires being set accidentally by the use of “safe” and “sane” fireworks, even within the Fillmore city limits.

Nash said fire conditions this year are explosively dangerous.

“We’ve had several years of drought conditions so the overall picture gets worse and worse,” Nash said. “We consider all fireworks, including the so-called ‘safe’ and ‘sane’ fireworks, extremely dangerous to both people and property.”

Then there is the danger of serious burn injuries.

“Sparklers terrify us,” Nash said. “Typically, the first thing that people do is to light one of these 1,200 degree sparklers and hand them to a little child who is holding it in their hands, waving it around their face, waving it around their hair. These cause many injuries to very small children.”

“I can’t say why so many parents think sparklers are safe,” Nash added. “You wouldn’t hand your child something else that was 1,200 degrees that was six inches from their face.”

As for the “safe” and “sane” fireworks, Nash was even more emphatic.

“They burn at high temperatures, and children should know that they are explosive devices,” Nash said. “It is like a bomb near children and that’s what parents are doing, unfortunately.”

But Mayor Conaway said the fundraising aspect is important although he was not specific when asked how much money the City of Fillmore makes from the sales.

“The county and the city realize an increase in sales tax return based on the sale of fireworks,” Conaway said.
According to the Ventura County 2003-04 Grand Jury report examining the costs of illegal fireworks to all of the cities, the total was considerable.

“The 10 police departments, to enforce fireworks laws in 2004, spent in excess of $66,600,” the document concluded.

“The reported cost to fire departments in the county was in excess of $24,300 in 2004.”

During that same period, the report stated the City of Fillmore generated $1.3 million in gross sales and netted $13,000 in sales tax receipts.