Ban All Fireworks

Over the July 4 weekend numerous roof fires caused by careless people with fireworks were reported. Fortunately, most were extinguished before they caused heavy damage.

But it only takes one to get out of hand and cause major problems. And this year one did: at the Casa de Valencia apartments in Anaheim last Thursday.

Luckily, no one was killed or seriously injured. Not this time. But hundreds were made homeless, many of whom lost everything they had, in the fire that burned 94 apartments, caused $2.2 million in damage and required all 156 units to be vacated because of fire damage and the loss of utility services.

Fire officials say that the blaze was caused by illegal fireworks. But in addition to finding bottle rockets and Roman candles at the fire scene, they also found legal, so-called “safe and sane,” fireworks that had been tampered with. And they reported that legal fireworks have caused other fires.

In 1980 a sparkler, which is legal, caused the largest fire in Tustin’s history and destroyed a 90-unit apartment building. Tustin residents promptly voted to ban all fireworks, as do many other California cities, most states and the neighboring counties of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Ventura.

Anaheim City Council members, and the rest of Orange County, should do the same. That’s what fire department officials have been urging for years.

But those urgings, and last Thursday’s fire, haven’t moved the Anaheim council to action. Last Tuesday it considered banning fireworks, or at least putting it to voters, but again backed off. It seems to be swayed more by the opposition to any ban from organizations that sell fireworks to raise money than it is by the real issue, which is the safety of residents, especially children, and property.

Aside from the threat of injury and loss of life that fireworks pose, property losses can far exceed the money raised by local groups selling fireworks. We doubt that Anaheim community organizations raised more than the $2.2 million in fire loss at the Casa de Valencia apartments.

The issue will be back before the Anaheim City Council on Tuesday. The council this time should listen to its fire chief and ban all fireworks.