Burn Bans, Dry & Hot, Fireworks?

[kumathebear]

Sitting here this evening listening to all the FD sirens responding to grass fires around Granbury.

SO hot and dry...burn ban in Hood County but NO restrictions on fireworks? HOT topic, pun intended, on Hood County Breaking News...missed the June 15th deadline for conditions so NO fireworks restrictions!

We don't live in the city limits so the ordinance on possessing or using fireworks does not pertain to our home area.

More sirens just now...brings back memories when we had our small ranch north of Granbury off 51...all the neighbors and I were on patrol to keep the "city folks" from pulling on our properties and setting off their purchases.

We all had a lot to lose....livestock not to mention our homes and barns. But they still came....

I'm the LAST person to want more laws and restrictions...but when it's this hot with dry pastures and past experience seeing what fire can do...I'm going aggressive now....time to stop as "You Can't fix STUPID, particularly when you don't have a SINGLE acre at risk!" Enough is Enough Folks!!

[Boss Buck]

Right there with you!

[Cold 1]

I agree, here they can't set them off in the city limits so they come where it's really dry.

[Playa]

Generally a burn ban= no fireworks, at least in west Texas.

[ladrones]

They banned the fireworks in most of NM. But it don't really have an effect.

[doghouse]

City of Goldthwaite cancelled their fireworks show for the fourth. To darn dry.

[UltraMax]

I think shooting off fireworks in the ultra dry weather is like not wearing a seat belt, which is absolutely dumb.

I also think it's bull crap for cities like Weatherford to ban fireworks inside of the city limits for fear of fires but it's ok for the city to have a HUGE fireworks display in the middle of town. Talk a about a bunch of hypocrites.

[MQ32Shooter]

I’ve had my place in Cisco since 2004 and we’ve had a Burn Ban in effect ever since I’ve been there. Never rains in West Texas.

[Worksalot]

I came upon a fire just starting that appeared to be caused by a cigarette butt. Fortunately there wasn’t enough fuel for it since the adjacent field with wheat stubble had been disced thoroughly. But while coming down some Farm to Market roads there were burnt patches all over. One ranch lost a number of trees and acres of grass to a fire started by someone along the road.

[Mudslinger]

There are State Laws on when and where fireworks can be outlawed in Texas and in Counties. It goes by a scale called the KBDI which is the drought index in TX. If the drought index reaches a certain number, then stick rockets and missiles or the sale can be outlawed and if the index reaches a higher number, then the sale of fireworks can be outlawed as it was almost across the entire state in 2011. This has to be done by June 15th, State Law. Yes fireworks can cause a lot of damage, but like a lot of things, who is responsible for the damage for the fires, the fireworks or people. I have personally seen people SET FIRES with fireworks and then the blame is on fireworks and believe me, when a fire happens during the selling of fireworks, then it will be blamed on fireworks.

YES, I am very biased when it comes to fireworks and the sale of them as I use to be in this business and my wife has been in it for over 30 years and is the Vice President and General Manager for TNT Fireworks for New Mexico and Texas. They follow every law by the book and do not do anything illegal (a distributor was just caught with over 42,000 dollars of illegal fireworks in NM). TNT does not do that, they are to big. Fireworks are the only legal retail business that the states can outlaw the sale of during a season period.
Yes I know that most think that this is no big deal to outlaw the sale and use of fireworks, but you do not even come close to understanding the amount of money in the sale of fireworks.

Sorry for the rant, but do not blame the fireworks for the fires and such, blame the irresponsible people that do not use the correctly or actually do not care how or where they hsoot them!

[Acameron52]

We’ve got our brush truck staffed 24-7 for the next week because of the idiots and their fire works...

[Cold 1]

I have no problem with them in big displays with the FD standing by. The city shoots them off here in a city park. They wont let the common people shoot them there. So they come to the country and leave their trash when they leave. We don't have much left to burn off up here this year so people are a little edgy about them.

[Mudslinger]

We’ve got our brush truck staffed 24-7 for the next week because of the idiots and their fire works...

I have no problem with them in big displays with the FD standing by. The city shoots them off here in a city park. They wont let the common people shoot them there. So they come to the country and leave their trash when they leave. We don't have much left to burn off up here this year so people are a little edgy about them.

True on the first statement as it is the idiots that cause the problems and people DO NOT pick up their trash which bothers me immensely as it does my wife and the fireworks industry.

[mjhaverkamp]

We are having a big fireworks display at Shuck Me in Broken Bow Friday night, the Hochatown Volunteer Fire Department will be on hand and they will be shooting the fireworks, we hope to get a few donations for them, yall come on out and enjoy if you are in the area.

[kumathebear]

Hood and Parker counties declared disaster area due to dry conditions. FIREWORKS banned.