Delawareans wanting to celebrate Independence Day with a bang should take time to get acquainted with the state’s fireworks laws.
Delaware laws restrict both what types of fireworks you can use and when you can use them. Michael Chionchio, the state’s Assistant Fire Marshal, explains that most fireworks are prohibited for non-professional use.
“Delaware does have some strict laws," he says. "There are only a very few things that are permitted to be used on July 4th and July 4th only. Those are sparklers or ground based novelty items such as fountains.”
That means no bottle rockets, Roman candles, or any other kind of aerial pyrotechnics. And, as Chionchio notes, using the handful of legal fireworks is limited to July 4th alone.
"The law was written to allow people to celebrate different ways on that day, not the whole month of July or the whole summer, just July 4th, for the celebration," he says.
Independence Day brings several concerns around the state's fireworks law, for example, people heading into nearby states to buy fireworks which are illegal in the First State.
"There are fireworks currently being sold in Delaware that meet the laws. They are the sparklers and the ground based novelty items," Chionchio says. "But the things that shoot up in the air, the bottle rockets, the firecrackers and things are are being sold to Delaware residents in Pennsylvania."
Another problem is visitors to the state's beaches, who may be from out of state and unfamiliar with Delaware's laws, which are stricter than many other places'.
"We've been trying to team up with the rental agents down in the beach area to give out a brochure on fireworks to let them know that, 'hey, when you're in Delaware, you you can't fire the majority of the commercial consumer fireworks that are available,'" Chionchio says.
Still, he says, Delawareans can enjoy fireworks on the 4th.
“Go to a professional firework show in your community," he says. "Many of the cities and towns throughout Delaware have been permitted by our department and given licenses to shoot off fireworks on July 4th or 3rd or, whatever day that they are having their fireworks.”
And, if you want to shoot off some legal fireworks, Chionchio reminds people to put fire safety first.
"Once they have been discharged, fountain or the sparklers [should be] placed into a bucket of water. Make sure that there's no grass fires or trash fires or anything that results from firing the pyrotechnics," Chionchio says.
You can find a link to a brochure with more information about state fireworks laws at the Fire Marshal's website.
