first tuesday wishes you a fun and safe 4th of July holiday, and as a reminder, the state of California permits only “safe and sane” fireworks. Safe and sane fireworks are those inspected and approved by the State Fire Marshal and not defined as dangerous and exempt. [Calif. Health and Safety Code §§12529; 12562]
Prohibited fireworks include: skyrockets, rockets, roman candles, chasers, sparklers over 10″ long or 1/4″ in diameter, torpedoes, friction fireworks, surprise fireworks, and any fireworks containing arsenic, boron, gallates or gallic acid, chlorates, magnesium, mercury salts, titanium, picrates or picric acid, thiocyanates, phosphorus, zirconium, or gunpowder. [Health & S C §12505]
Fireworks safety laws are also enforced to different degrees on the city and/or county level, so please contact your local fire department to check on the legal status and use requirements of specific fireworks.
For more information on fireworks, please visit the following websites:
www.fireworks-safety.com – checks the legal status of fireworks in your California county and also offers a fire safety kids’ page;
www.fireworksafety.com – provides safety tips for selecting and displaying fireworks; and
osfm.fire.ca.gov/fireworks.html – the official site of the California State Fire Marshal, including a handbook on safe and sane fireworks.
