Pittsburgh forms task force to handle explosion of fireworks complaints

Fireworks complaints in Pittsburgh have increased by nearly 400% so far this month over the same period in 2019 and the city plans to address it through increased enforcement.

The city on Friday announced the creation of a task force, which includes police and Fire Bureau investigators, to actively enforce the city fireworks ordinance.

It is illegal to set off fireworks — even those that have been legally purchased — within 150 feet of any structure in Pittsburgh, which means most areas of the city, according to the Public Safety Department. Violators face a $100 fine and confiscation of fireworks.

“Please remember that fireworks are a real fire hazard and can be very dangerous,” Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich said in a statement. “I urge everyone to exercise caution this year and not use them.”

Hissrich noted that the city’s annual July Fourth fireworks display was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic and all large gatherings are banned under an executive order issued by Mayor Bill Peduto.

Public Safety reported that police received 137 fireworks complaints between June 1 and 21 — a 389 percent increase over the 28 complaints they received during the same period in 2019 and warned that they “can almost never be set off legally inside city limits.”

“Fireworks are not safe, especially in the hands of children,” fire Prevention Officer Lisa Epps-Cuda said in a statement. “Not even sparklers are safe. Think about it: Water boils at 212 degrees, wood burns at 575 degrees, glass melts at 900 degrees and sparklers burn at 1,200 degrees. Why would you put something like that in the hands of a child?”