L.A. Makes It Official: Fireworks or Fire Trucks

A day after the busiest Fourth of July in the Fire Department’s history, the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday moved to cut off fire protection to San Fernando unless that city bans the sale of fireworks.

The council unanimously and without discussion voted to require the ban as a condition for a new fire protection contract with the small city.

Under the existing 10-year contract, which expires June 30, 1989, San Fernando is paying Los Angeles almost $1.4 million this year for fire protection.

“It is absurd for us to have a contract for fire suppression with a city that sells fireworks,” Councilwoman Joy Picus said after the meeting.

Fireworks have been banned in Los Angeles since 1942, but fireworks sold in San Fernando find their way into Los Angeles, which surrounds the small city, said Picus, who requested the action.

Serious Consideration

San Fernando Mayor Ray Richardson said last week that his city will seriously consider banning fireworks within the next month.

“The time has come to take a hard look at the issue,” City Administrator Donald E. Penman added Tuesday.

Penman noted that San Fernando expects to complete within a month a review of alternatives to the Los Angeles contract, including possibly contracting with the Los Angeles County Fire Department or starting a new San Fernando fire department.

San Fernando did away with its two-station fire department in 1979 after deciding that Los Angeles could provide the service at a lower cost. Penman called the contract a good deal for Los Angeles because the city does not need to pay for additional firefighters or equipment to serve San Fernando.

Record Fourth

The Fire Department on Monday responded to 1,959 calls throughout Los Angeles, making it the busiest Fourth of July on record, said Battalion Chief Dean Cathey. Monday’s figures fell short of the all-time record of more than 2,000 incidents recorded by the Fire Department on a windy day in 1984.

“Obviously, most of that was related to holiday activity,” said Cathey, noting that 1,194 of the calls occurred between 6 p.m. and midnight.

By way of contrast, the department responds to an average of about 800 calls a day.

Cathey applauded the council’s action. He said the Fire Department supports a statewide ban on the sale of fireworks.

According to the county Fire Department, 41 of the 85 cities in the county permit the sale of fireworks.