Missouri’s fireworks retailers are all fired up this time of year. Seasonal fireworks stands officially opened for business today in Missouri and can operate through July 10.
State Fire Marshal Tim Bean said the fireworks supply is expected to be well stocked this time around.
“When the COVID-19 event broke out, the supply and demand couldn’t be met there for about a year and a half. But the lines opened up and they started receiving their ordered fireworks that they hadn’t received. And so, actually what happened there was a stockpile and we’re able to have the product now on hand,” said Bean.
Many of the stands are operated by nonprofit organizations fundraising for a certain cause. Bean expects around 1,200 seasonal permits to be approved to sell fireworks.
Bean said July 4th can be one of the busiest days of the year for fires.
“We still have some areas in our state that have a high drought going on,” said Bean. “So that is factored into whether there’s more calls or not. So that’s elevated by fires but it’s elevated for first responder medical calls, you know, people getting hurt, people getting burnt, just accidents involving this type of thing.”
Bean said check your local ordinances to see when you are allowed to light off fireworks. They vary from city to city, including when drought conditions are taken into account.
Since the ground is so dry and can easily become a fire hazard, have a bucket of water nearby when lighting off fireworks.
Bean said fireworks labeled as 1.4G are legal to shoot off. Fireworks that are for professional licensed handlers are labeled as 1.4P.
“If somebody sees something that just doesn’t look right or you think there’s an illegal type operation going on, we encourage people to contact us. We’ll take our team and try to investigate that. So if somebody sees something, please say something.”
According to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, the state had 51 reported fireworks-related injuries last year – down from 76 the previous year and 87 in 2020.
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