Sonoma County residents divided over 'safe and sane' fireworks

Friday, June 29, 2018
SONOMA COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- Who would expect an argument about July 4th fireworks? In fire-scarred Sonoma County, they have seen this coming.

Four cities -- Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Sebastopol and Cloverdale -- still allow the sale of "safe and sane" fireworks. Now they have become controversial, as well.
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"We do good work," said Robin Merrill of the Elim Lutheran Church.

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They have sold fireworks in Petaluma for seven years and raised tens of thousands of dollars for disaster relief across the nation.

"I'm conflicted," added Judy Peterson. "But I have a thing about honoring commitments."



Merrill adds, "We expect some push-back. But we hand out pamphlets and warn every person to set these off in safe places."
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That attitude hardly silences critics of the practice.

"Safe and sane fireworks can still start fires," said Santa Rosa Assistant Fire Marshall Paul Lowenthal. "They pose a significant threat to our city."




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