Fireworks mean danger in Sisters area

For many people the Fourth of July is not complete without fireworks.

Fire officials want fireworks users to learn what fireworks are legal in Oregon, what restrictions are in effect where they will use them and how to use them safely.

Knowing what you can and can’t do with fireworks comes down to two broad categories: places where you cannot use any fireworks and places where you can use legal fireworks safely, according to Sisters-Camp Sherman Fire Marshall David Wheeler.

You cannot use fireworks at any time in National Forest and Bureau of Land Management lands surrounding Sisters, anywhere within the Black Butte Ranch Rural Fire Protection District or in most private forest subdivisions.

All fireworks are banned on national forests in Oregon and Washington including the Deschutes and Ochoco National Forests in Central Oregon, according to Rolland Giller, public information specialist in the Central Oregon Office of Communications for the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.

“Possessing, discharging, or using any kind of fireworks or other pyrotechnic device except emergency highway fuses and flares is illegal on national forests,” Giller said. “They are also illegal on Bureau of Land Management lands. The offense is punishable by a fine of not more than $500 or imprisonment for not more than six months or both.”

A similar complete year-long ban on all fireworks also is in effect in the Black Butte Ranch Rural Fire Protection District.

“All fireworks are banned all year long, and I mean all fireworks,” said Black Butte Ranch Fire Chief Ed Sherrell.

The last fireworks incident reported by the district was on New Year’s Eve of 2000. Chief Sherrell also reminds Black Butte Ranch residents that during the summer fire season all charcoal briquette fires are prohibited in that fire district.

Elsewhere in the Sisters area, other fire districts and the Oregon Department of Forestry enforce the regulations established by the Office of the State Fire Marshal, according to Wheeler. Fireworks that may be legally used in Oregon without a permit include sparklers, smoke and punk, fountains, novelties, crackle and strobe, and wheels and spinners.

The State Fire Marshal’s regulations on fireworks also are followed within the Cloverdale Rural Fire Protection District.

“As a result, the Cloverdale District has had no fireworks-caused fires in the past four years,” Fire Chief Chuck Cable said.

Sisters has had few problems because of strict enforcement, Wheeler said.

“We follow the State Fire Marshal’s regulations and we have had only two fireworks-caused fires in the past four years and they were small fires, Wheeler said. “We had no reported violations last year.”

The City of Sisters also follows the State Fire Marshal’s regulations on fireworks.

“In addition, we also have a complete ban on the sale of fireworks within the city,” said City Manager Eileen Stein.

The State Fire Marshal closely regulates the commercial sale of any fireworks in the state and also requires one of several permits for any public fireworks display.

The Bulletin annually sponsors a fireworks show from Pilot Butte in Bend.

An individual possessing illegal fireworks risks fines up to $500 for violations including possession and endangering life and property, according to the Fire Marshal’s Office. They suggest that public fireworks displays operated under permit and with trained personnel are the best way to enjoy aerial fireworks. That office also advises that fireworks legally purchased in another state may not be legal in Oregon, resulting in a violation.