According to witnesses, a fireworks mortar lit on a downtown sidewalk on Sunday August 24th set these trees and occupied home on fire. The house could have burned to the ground if not for the immediate response of attentive neighbors and Renton Fire Authority.

Emergency responders at the scene of August 24th fireworks blaze

Carter Farmer, who lives within a few hundred feet of the fire, had previously spoken to Renton’s Mayor and City Council on July 7th, seven weeks before this fire. She had warned that ongoing fireworks were continuing to be a problem in her neighborhood, and she had asked for better enforcement of fireworks laws.

Fireworks are illegal in Renton.  In 2006 Renton voters voted 62.57 %  – 37.43% to keep them illegal, confirming a 2004 vote by Renton City Council that first made fireworks illegal.  But enforcement of the ban has recently seemed spotty to non-existent, and many residents are now understandably complaining.  Among them is Carter Farmer, a North Renton neighborhood resident who took the Mayor and Council to task at a council meeting on July 7th, demanding action, after having sent them numerous emails and suggestions on the subject in previous years.  Ms. Farmer’s testimony can be watched here on the City’s Youtube Channel, at 41 minutes and 30 seconds in.  About seven weeks after she gave her testimony, a home near hers was set on fire by fireworks.

Renton’s voters and Renton Council made fireworks illegal after there were simply too many documented incidents of structural fires and wildfires, emergency room visits, and distress by residents and animals caused by fireworks on our streets.  In the year before the Council ban, both a new home and a City Parks Building burned to the ground after being set on fire by fireworks.  As urban wildfires across the west become more deadly every year, the ban on fireworks only makes more sense.

The year that Council implemented the fireworks ban in 2004, we knew many residents would miss the excitement, brilliance, and percussion of Fourth of July fireworks, so we initiated a new tradition of a professional fireworks show at Coulon Park.  While we knew that some residents may be tempted to light their own, we felt that holding the professional fireworks show and a city 4th of July celebration at our biggest beach park allowed us to direct  fireworks enthusiasts to the show instead– providing a necessary alternative to lighting fireworks throughout the whole city.  But a couple years ago the professional fireworks show was stopped, and this year Coulon Park was not even open for fourth of July BBQs after 7:00 PM.

The first year Renton cancelled the Coulon Fourth of July celebration, 2023, fireworks did a million dollars of damage at the Landing and put three businesses out of commission for a year.  The next year Renton experienced a threatening wildfire caused by fireworks, in which an apartment building could have been lost if not for the immediate response from Renton Fire Authority.

My recommendation would be to restore the City 4th of July Celebration, and simultaneously warn residents that Renton intends to aggressively enforce the fireworks ban in future year, with more fireworks confiscations and fines for violators.  Then, as we’ve done in the past, Council should insist on getting reports from Police and Fire Chiefs after each 4th of July with metrics about how many citations were issued and pounds of fireworks confiscated.  And Council should hold public meetings to gather ideas from residents like Ms. Farmer regarding how to better enforce the ban.

Some of the fireworks being lit in Renton violate just city laws, but many are also in violation of state laws.  Fireworks that send projectiles into the sky or make loud percussion sounds (booms) are not legal anywhere in the State of Washington outside of  Reservation land  (Reservation lands are subject to Federal Laws and Tribal laws, which allow some aerial and percussion fireworks when manufactured and sold to certain standards).  Penalties for lighting fireworks that are illegal in the state could be made more severe than penalties for lighting fountains, ground-flowers, or smokers.  In any case, all of these are illegal in Renton outside of licensed shows,  based on a democratic decision by nearly two out of three of Renton’s voters.  And while it may remain challenging to stop every violation on the evening of the 4th of July,  there should be no tolerance for continued fireworks use through the summer– it’s just too dangerous to our residents’ lives and property.

I would enjoy hearing from readers on this topic.  Please feel free to comment with your ideas, perspectives, and suggestions.  You may leave comments anonymously if you choose.