Firework sales set to dip as unincorporated King County bans take effect
Jun 28, 2022, 1:33 PM | Updated: 1:57 pm
Photo by Leonard Ortiz
Fireworks sales in Washington state begin at noon Tuesday, June 28, and residents will be allowed to set them off at designated locations until July 5 at 11 p.m.
Even if fireworks were legal where you live or celebrated last year, the rules may have changed for this year, Washington state Fire Marshal spokesperson Gregory Baruso cautions.
“In each jurisdiction, the discharge period is a little different, and they are banned in other places, so please check with your local jurisdiction before setting off any fireworks. Remember if you are using fireworks this year make sure you are doing it safely.”
More information about locations to purchase fireworks, public fireworks shows, and where you are allowed to set off your own fireworks, can be found on county websites for Pierce, Snohomish, Kitsap, and King Counties.
Most cities in King County, like Seattle and Bellevue, have had a near-complete ban on firework sales and discharges. King County recently announced that fireworks would be banned in unincorporated parts of the county.
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“We have found that there are more and more restrictions, especially as some of those laws bleed over from urban areas into more rural ones,” Baruso said. “I suspect sales will be down, retail licenses will be down.”
In unincorporated Pierce County though, fireworks are legal from July 1 through July 4 this year, which will be the last year that the full five days are allowed. Next year the county has announced that it will only allow fireworks on the 4th of July.
More than anything, Baruso says, people need to make sure they are not injuring themselves or others, as well as keeping the risk of forest fires in mind as the weather continues to warm.
“People don’t know how to handle them,” Baruso said. “They don’t know what the illegal fireworks do, I’ve seen people get hurt. [What we do] is about saving lives, saving property, preventing injuries, and stopping forest fires. Please be diligent about what you’re doing and do it safely”
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