Illegal fireworks, dry East Bay hills raise fire concerns heading into July 4 holiday weekend
DUBLIN, Calif. (KGO) -- So called "safe and sane" fireworks are now on sale in Dublin.
The sales are a popular way for local sports and community groups to raise money.
But across the Bay Area, the threat of illegal fireworks remains a danger even more so with the dry hills.
Dublin resident Ramprasad Prabhakar and his family like to go big on the Fourth of July. He spent almost $700 on fireworks.
"We invite friends over, who can't do (fireworks) at their places. And we have a pool party on the 4th, so friends are coming over, and it's going to be a blast," he said.
Fireworks are illegal in the Bay Area, except for safe and sane fireworks, which are a category of fireworks that stay close to the ground. Those include items like sparklers and fountains. And they are only allowed in a handful of Bay Area cities: Dublin, Gilroy, Pacifica and Union City. Cities like Dublin even limit where they can be used.
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"You can launch them at your own residence. And it is great that Dublin does open up a number of city parks that you can go and set them off," said Jared Shaffer, a board member of the Dublin Little League.
Shaffer says firework sales generates thousands of dollars for local Dublin nonprofits and sports league. And sales are already off to a strong start.
When asked what his favorite fireworks are, Prabhkar's young son answered: "The ones that go into the air and then explode."
Those are always a fan favorite -- and are illegal and a big threat, as we head into the Fourth of July weekend, says Michael Hunt with the Oakland Fire Department.
"Fireworks are the cause of a lot of fire investigation calls over the holiday weekend. So, we expect that we will be running three to five times calls over the Fourth of July weekend than we do year-round," Hunt said.
MORE: San Jose cancels Almaden Lake 4th of July fireworks show due to safety concerns
And as fire season has become a year-round event in California, cities like Berkeley are taking steps ahead of Fourth of July.
"We have closed off some of the roads up in the hills, because we want to make sure people aren't setting off fireworks. And setting fires during the Fourth of July," said Berkeley Mayor Adena Ishii.
That includes Grizzle Peak, which will be closed from Wednesday, July 4 to Thursday, July 5.
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Hunt says there are no red flag events announced for the July 4 weekend, but adds that the East Bay hills are drier this year due to the drier winter.
"All it takes is one incident to grow and potentially extend to another home, or multiple homes. And now, we've got upwards of 100 firefighters responding to a single incident in a neighborhood, because someone used illegal fireworks," Hunt said.
