Independence Day keeps firefighters busy

Monday, June 30, 1997 | 4:35 a.m.

Clark County Fire Department officials have long believed that most fireworks incidents on the Fourth of July are caused by illegal explosive devices.

This year, they hope to get definitive proof to back that theory.

Clark County Fire Department spokesman Bob Leinbach said investigators have been instructed to determine not only if a fire is fireworks-related but also whether it is caused by an illegal explosive or a Safe and Sane brand device.

"If there is a fire on a roof, it most likely is caused by an illegal firework," Leinbach said, noting that Safe and Sane devices do not fly through the air like illegal bottle rockets.

Documenting fires

"Our belief has been that a vast majority of the fires are caused by the illegal fireworks. This year, we are going to document it."

However, the results also could show that Safe and Sane devices might not be so safe and sane.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission over the last 10 years has found that just 25-30 percent of injuries associated with fireworks have been caused by illegal explosives or homemade devices.

That leaves a large percentage for other forms of fireworks, including Safe and Sane. However, what may be considered illegal in one state may not be illegal in another, which could affect those statistics.

And with local Independence Day fires on the decline -- there were half as many last year as there were four years ago -- officials are encouraged that the Safe and Sane alternatives may be working.

"We had 45 Fourth of July fires in Clark County last year, which was down from 47 in '95, 52 in '94 and 91 in '93," Leinbach said. "Our guys are still worked heavily on the Fourth, but things look a lot better."

Last year, firefighters in Las Vegas, Clark County and North Las Vegas responded to 479 Independence Day emergency calls. The yearly average was 173.3 emergency calls per day. Also, the average number of fire calls per day last year was 10.5.

One of the worst fireworks-related fires last year was on June 28, when teenagers tossed ignited illegal fireworks onto the balcony of an apartment complex at 1900 E. Tropicana Ave. It started a blaze that caused $200,000 damage. Two 14-year-old boys were arrested in connection with the incident.

Starting last Saturday and concluding 12 a.m. this Saturday, 279 booths were set up in Southern Nevada -- 128 in Las Vegas, 106 in Clark County, 21 in Henderson, 20 in North Las Vegas, three in Boulder City and one in Mesquite -- by nonprofit groups to sell Safe and Sane brand fireworks.

They are the local only sites in which legal fireworks can be purchased.

Fireworks rejected

However, not all Safe and Sane brand fireworks are legal. This year, about 15 percent of those devices submitted for review by fireworks officials to area fire officials were turned down, including some box fountains and cones.

However, for the first time, local fire officials have approved spinning ground fireworks because they passed a national testing procedure by remaining in a 10-foot area on a flat asphalt surface.

That does not mean that local fire officials are confident in the safety of that device -- or any other firework for that matter.

"Anytime you have a firework that is mobile and producing heat, there is cause for concern," said Las Vegas Fire Department Inspector Chuck Murphy. "There also is a big difference between a radius of 10 feet in a parking lot and 10 feet in a desert field with vegetation.

"People need to be aware of that."

Leinbach added that an approval of fireworks by area fire departments does not constitute an endorsement. To the contrary, they are viewed as a necessary evil -- an alternative to the more dangerous devices.

The local charities that set up fireworks booths pay $50 for permits in area municipalities. In the county, permits are free. After their initial investment in the stock, the sky is the limit as far as profits go.

"Some of these booths, I've been told by their operators, make profits ranging from $2,500 to $5,000," said Henderson Fire Department Inspector Corky Wilkins.

Still, she notes Henderson sites are down eight from last year, when the city began charging the permit fee.

She reckons the decline could be because of an ordinance that requires unsold stock to be returned daily to the supplier in North Las Vegas if the booth does not remain open 24 hours or does not have a guard when closed at night.

Other local communities have about the same number of booths as last year.

And even though Safe and Sane products are supposed to be safer than the illegal fireworks manufactured in Third World countries with little or no quality control, their storage in large quantities upsets some area residents.

For instance, Ann Golonka, president of the Southern Nevada chapter of the National Organization for Women, is critical of the trailer loads of fireworks allowed at Phantom Fireworks at 4760 La Mancha Ave.

The area is adjacent to the site of the proposed women's prison which is expected to be built by next Independence Day. It also is in an area that had high-profile fires the last two years, including one that burned for several days at the nearby auto yards.

"I'm concerned because of that dump fire last year," said Golonka, whose organization has gone on record opposing the women's prison being built at that site, amid concerns for the inmates' safety.

"If something should go wrong, they would never be able to get those women out in time."

The area also has been said to have poor water pressure.

Leinbach said the trailers in question are closer to hydrants than other sites in the area that burned, and that the water pressure is adequate.

County inspectors issued Phantom a 90-day storage permit after inspecting the site.