Bang!: Fireworks injuries and damages rise in Minnesota since legalization

From the middle of June until the middle of August, the arguable tranquility of my Phillips neighborhood in Minneapolis is broken by all sorts of whistles, snaps, pops, and bangs. Bikers scan the bridges overlooking the Greenway for kids shooting fireworks down. Dogs cower in bathtubs and piss all over the floor rather than go outside. In a neighborhood with its share of gun violence, people say,"That was just a firework, right?"

For 61 years after fireworks were banned in Minnesota in 1941, the only way for Minnesotans to get their paws on all these explosives was to drive to the Wisconsin border, where warehouses were packed with all sorts of exotic armaments with names like Public Outrage, Run Like Hell, and Dragon Farts. In 2002, a couple years after Jesse Ventura was elected governor, he signed a bill that legalized certain types of fireworks-- essentially sparklers and snap'n'pops. Any fireworks that are aerial or explosive are still banned, according to the statute.

When I work at the coffee shop in Kingsfield-- a relatively affluent neighborhood near Uptown-- there are no explosions. Riding east on the Greenway, the bangs get more common. I estimate you hear an explosion every 10 or 15 seconds until past midnight. These explosions, are not sparklers or snap'n'pops. I don't know quite why they're so common, but since Ventura legalized fireworks they've been a yearly nuisance in my neighborhood.

It's not only a matter of irritation, it's a matter of public safety. Every year the Minnesota State Fire Marshall collects data about the number of people admitted to the hospital during 4th of July weekend. In the four years before Ventura legalized them, there were about 25 injuries per year. In 2002, it abruptly bumped up to 92, steadily rising until 2004 when it reached a high of 111 before dipping back down to 67 last year, still almost three times the rate of the years before legalization. Remember that these stats also only reflect those who reported to the hospital on fourth of July weekend. Fireworks are flying in my neighborhood for two solid months.

On the economic side, the number of incidents of property damage has increased 15 times since before the legalization. Economic damage has risen by about six to seven times as much.

Minneapolis doesn't currently have a particular statute dedicated to fireworks regulation. They do have a word document on safety though!

I don't really want to criminalize the possession fireworks; what's the point? But I don't see why retailers should be selling glossy sets of them at Target (a WCCO "I" team report found last year that most big-box retailers don't check IDs, as you're supposed to be 18 to buy any fireworks in Minnesota). Whether that's where people are getting these explosive fireworks, or in the same warehouses at the Wisconsin border as always, I don't care. They're a nuisance that has gotten worse over the years. Anyone who doesn't think so should come see the chaotic aftermath of the fireworks gathering in Powderhorn Park, with bombs and flashes and sirens going off for hours.

So from now on, go to Powderhorn Park or the Taste of Minnesota, even explode them on Fourth of July weekend, but the rest of the time let's stick to those smoky worm pellets and sparklers.