The Fourth of July is coming and while they’ll still be shooting fireworks over the National Mall this year, most municipal shows around the area have been called off in an effort to keep people socially distanced.
As a result, many municipalities expect more people will be taking fireworks into their own hands this July 4.
The compared to previous ones.
In Prince George鈥檚 and Montgomery counties in Maryland, as well as the City of Alexandria in Virginia, all fireworks are illegal, including sparklers.
Everywhere else across the region allows for some sort of pyrotechnics.
That means if you haven鈥檛 seen them yet, pretty soon you鈥檒l see lots of roadside stands springing up around the region where you can buy fireworks.
If you鈥檙e buying out of the D.C. area, where the laws are a lot more relaxed, you want to keep it legal, but there are some key words to look for.
鈥淭he thing that separate the fireworks and ground-based sparkling device is the action of the device,鈥� said Bill Ray, who is with the Anne Arundel County Fire Marshal鈥檚 office.
鈥淎ny device that propels, jumps, flies, or reports, are illegal鈥� in Maryland, as well as D.C. and the Northern Virginia region, said Ray.
That last word 鈥� 鈥渞eport鈥� 鈥� is the one to watch for.
鈥淚f the device explodes with a bang, that is a report,鈥� Ray said.
He advises consumers to read labels closely before buying anything. At a glance, it鈥檚 not always easy to tell whether something is legal or not.
鈥淕round-based sparking devices will say 鈥楥aution: emit sparks, showers of sparks,鈥欌�� Ray said.
鈥淚llegal fireworks may say 鈥榃arning: shoots flaming balls with reports,鈥� 鈥榃arning: flammable rockets with reports,鈥� 鈥榃arning: shoots whistles in the air.鈥�
鈥淎ny person found to be in possession or discharge of illegal fireworks can be issued a criminal citation,鈥� said Ray.
Generally the severity of that citation will vary depending on where you are.
鈥淧lease don鈥檛 go out and purchase illegal fireworks and produce your own show,鈥� said Ray, who notes the public displays you normally go to are produced by licensed professionals.
For more information on what is legal and not where you live, 海角社区app has compiled a list of firework laws by area.
