Council leader sparks fireworks sales debate
AN urgent reform of fireworks sales is needed to stop families being ‘terrified’ and ‘terrorised’ in their own homes around Bonfire Night and New Year, a councillor has said.
Annual November 5 celebrations are traditionally the busiest time of year for firefighters with a surge in call-outs, as well as attacks by ‘mindless individuals’, to contend with.
However, a particularly busy year has prompted emergency service chiefs in Tyne and Wear to call for tougher rules on sales as they brace themselves for a fresh rise in incidents marking the end of 2020.
Councillor Nick Forbes, vice-chairman of the Tyne and and Wear Fire and Rescue Authority, said: “A lot of our residents felt terrorised by fireworks in the weeks around Bonfire Night.
“I don’t know why but it felt to me like there was even more disturbance every night going on which I received a lot of complaints about and I am sure others did too.
“It is not just the noise, it is the effect on pets and vulnerable people and it adds to the sense of being under fire in your own home or area.
“I think we need to look again at the regulatory framework around the purchase of fireworks.”
Cllr Forbes, who is also the leader of Newcastle City Council, was speaking at Monday’s meeting of the fire authority, which oversees the work of the Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service
According to a report for the panel, which met by videolink, the brigade was called out to more than 450 incidents over the Bonfire Night period this year.
Over that time, fire crews were the target of four attacks.
They also had to tackle at least three blazes thought to have been caused by fireworks.
Coun Forbes added he was particularly worried growing online sales, a trend accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic, may be limiting the authority’s ability to clamp down on rogue sellers.
In the run up to November 5, almost 300kg of fireworks were seized.
They were found being stored or sold illegally or not meeting safety standards.
Coun Forbes said: “My worry is if we don’t keep up with the way the world is changing we will have continued problems with this, not just at the Bonfire Night period but other times.
“The last thing we need is yet another round of people feeling terrorised and under threat of going out because of people chucking fireworks around, letting them off indiscriminately and causing the kind of nuisance which make people feel terrified.”
The last thing we need is yet another round of people feeling terrorised and under threat of going out
Coun Nick Forbes