RFD Reminds Residents That All Fireworks are Illegal in the City

With just a few days to go before the Fourth of July, the Redlands Fire Department wants to remind residents that all fireworks - even those referred to as Safe and Sane - are illegal in the city.

Members of Redlands Fire and the Redlands Police Department will be out in the community on the Fourth, and if fireworks are found they will be confiscated and citations could be issued. If a fire or injury occurs due to the use of fireworks, violators may be charged and held responsible for restitution, according to a press release from the Redlands Fire Department.

To remind the community how dangerous fireworks can be, the Fire Department shared these statistics:

• The risk of injury from fireworks is two-and-a-half times as high for kids between the ages of five to 14 as it is for the general population
• Thirty six percent of emergency room visits due to fireworks injuries are caused by sparklers, fountains and novelties
• Each year, more than 12,000 people in the United States, half of them children, are treated in the ER for injuries caused by fireworks
• Out of children injured by fireworks, 54 percent are under adult supervision, and 26 percent are bystanders
• Ten percent of injured children suffer permanent damage