Several frustrated residents renewed complaints to the Santa Maria City Council on Tuesday about out-of-control illegal fireworks, suggesting banning the sale of so-called “safe and sane” versions to boost enforcement efforts.
The complaints came from a group of city and Orcutt area residents who described an onslaught of illegal fireworks leading up to July 4, and during and after the holiday.
“We are, myself and my husband, in our 70s, and we lived in a war zone over the Fourth of July,” said Cheri Imoe said.
She said her husband, Larry, asked at one point if the city-sponsored fireworks show had been moved to their neighborhood at the southern end of the city. In reality, it occurred at the northern edge of Santa Maria.
“I mean our whole backyard was lit up like a fireworks display,” she said.
Use of illegal fireworks, those propelled into the air, started weeks before Fourth of July and included several a day, with speakers saying they worried about house fires and other issues.
Earlier in the meeting, Fire Chief Leonard Champion said the calls for service that day were slightly higher than normal. His agency also received word that a person with a minor injury related to fireworks showed up at Marian Regional Medical Center.
In addition to fireworks, Champion said, he learned about the use of Chinese fire lanterns or small hot air balloon made of paper, with an opening at the bottom where a small fire sits.
“Those are very dangerous, and we’re glad and fortunate that nothing came of that,” Champion said.
One citation was issued and another was forwarded to the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution for illegal fireworks use, but no third-party administrative citations were issued.
Those require neighbors to sign the complaint, something few people are willing to do, Police Chief Phil Hansen said.
“It’s a very frustrating task that we have in that regard in terms of enforcement,” Hansen said, adding that officers put a lot of effort into prevention and mitigation.
Saying she felt like she was under assault, resident Mary Clark described fireworks debris hitting her house for hours and finding birds dead in her yard the morning after July 4.
“I’m tired of it. I don’t understand why law-abiding citizens like myself who don’t even have so much as a parking ticket in my life have to lay down and change my behavior for people who choose to break the law,” Clark said.
The group says the loud illegal fireworks terrorize dogs and cats, senior citizens, dementia patients, veterans and those with autism and asthma.
Those using illegal fireworks don’t necessarily hide their actions, readily talking about it on social media sites, speakers said, adding that the city needs to stop touting zero tolerance and just say zero enforcement.
The plethora of illegal fireworks prompted several residents to call for banning all fireworks, including the called safe and safe and sold by nonprofit groups at booths in the city.
In the weeks leading up to the holiday, Santa Maria city staff undertook an widespread education program to try to extinguish illegal fireworks use, spreading the message in utility bills, on social media, through media outlets, via digital sign trailer and on the city’s website, City Manager Jason Stilwell said.
Santa Barbara County’s largest city, and one of three to allow safe and sane fireworks, isn’t the only agency wrestling with illegal fireworks use, Stilwell said.
“It is a challenge throughout the state,” he added.
“I’m sure that the testimony we’ve heard this evening about the fireworks is going on in every City Council meeting throughout California at the first meeting after the Fourth of July,” Councilman Michael Moats added.
He said he viewed Pismo Beach fireworks from rural Arroyo Grande.
“The fireworks that were not shot off at the Pismo Pier were greater than those that were,” he said. “I don’t know where people get such professional-grade fireworks.”
— Noozhawk North County editor Janene Scully can be reached at jscully@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.