Posted on

Fireworks law stays the same in Charles City: sales, yes; shooting, no

By Kelly Terpstra, kterpstra@charlescitypress.com

Yes or no.

That is the question.

It’s been over a year now since the state of Iowa passed a law allowing certain types of consumer fireworks to be set off or sold during designated times. Fireworks enthusiasts can fire off their pyrotechnics from June 1 until July 8 from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. – if their city allows it.

Charles City does not allow it, but it does allow the sale and possession of consumer-grade fireworks such as firecrackers, Roman candles and rockets, as is required by the state.

Tickets can be issued by the Charles City Police Department for illegally setting off fireworks within the city limits.

CCPD Captain Brandon Franke stated that last year the number of calls for fireworks being set off was about the same as it was the year before when they were illegal to possess and ignite. Warnings were usually issued last year to residents who were caught lighting off fireworks, he said.

“It’s pretty much the same. If we get complaints we can issue a citation for lighting them off in the city,” said Franke. “We really didn’t have an issue with it last year.”

Charles City Fire Chief Eric Whipple said there were a few people last summer that had injuries that were a result of fireworks being set off. He said they drove themselves to the hospital and none of those injuries sustained were severe.  

Setting off fireworks on private property in rural areas of Floyd County is allowed.

It might be harder to find municipalities that allow the private discharge of fireworks as opposed to those that don’t across the state.

The city of Des Moines and most of its surrounding suburbs banned the discharge of fireworks. Des Moines allowed them last year, but changed course after a large number of complaints about the noise. Almost all of the large cities within Iowa do not allow their residents to set off fireworks.

Mason City adjusted its ordinance to allow residents to discharge fireworks on a limited basis from July 3-4. Waverly also allows fireworks to be set off from June 28 to July 8.

Osage, New Hampton, Clear Lake, Decorah, Cedar Falls and Waterloo do not allow consumer fireworks to be set off within city limits.

The Charles City Council this past February denied a permit for TNT Fireworks to sell fireworks in a tent in the Hy-Vee parking lot. The city owns the property and a special-use permit was required in that instance. Other fireworks sales points have popped up around town, however.  

It’s been 80 years (1938) since Iowa became the first state to ban fireworks, before then-Gov. Terry Branstad signed legislation rescinding that ban last year.

In 1931, the northwest Iowa town of Spencer saw its downtown set ablaze and much of its business district burned to the ground after what authorities believed to be a lit sparkler was dropped near a drugstore fireworks display. Nearly 100 buildings caught fire and almost five blocks downtown were affected by the fire.

Five years later in Remsen, a girl dropped a sparkler on a pile of gasoline-soaked rags in a garage. That destroyed 20 businesses and left 100 people homeless in the small community that rests near the Missouri River.

Charles City has also had its experience with fireworks gone wrong, although in this case it was at a professional community display.

It will be 10 years ago this Fourth of July when 37 people were injured in 2008 when Charles City’s main fireworks display malfunctioned during the Independence Day celebration.

The investigation report stated shell malfunction sent fireworks into the crowd. One or more shells detonated in their launch tubes, setting off secondary explosions. The official cause remains undetermined.

For cities and counties that allow fireworks to be ignited, the legal times set by the state are 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. June 1 to July 8, and the same times from Dec. 10 to Jan. 3

An extra hour is added, until 11 p.m., on the weekend before and the weekend after July 4 and on July 4 itself, and on the weekend before and the weekend after New Year’s Day. On New Year’s Eve, fireworks can be used from 9 a.m. Dec. 31 until 12:30 a.m. Jan. 1.

Any of those times can be shortened or eliminated by local ordinance.

Social Share

LATEST NEWS