Officials, residents prepare for illegal fireworks
Activity expected to be heavy with city reopened
By Paige Fry
The pandemic didn’t stop Chicagoans from celebrating the Fourth of July in 2020. The sky was filled with red and white lights in neighborhoods across the city despite the absence of an official show.
Now as the city has reopened and more people will be out to show their patriotism or simply celebrate after a year lost to the shutdown, there are concerns that even more amateur fireworks shows could lead to lost fingers or worse.
So far this year there doesn’t appear to have been an uptick in illegal fireworks. From Jan. 1 to July 1, there have been just over 5,500 calls regarding fireworks versus over 12,400 calls for the same time period last year, according to Office of Emergency Management Center data provided by spokeswoman Mary May.
The city is also back to holding its own show. The official Chicago lakefront show was set for Saturday night, and officials said the fireworks would be visible along the lakefront from Grand Avenue to the north to 55th Street to the south.
Navy Pier will not be launching any fireworks over the holiday weekend. But the pier will continue to have a fireworks display on Wednesdays and Saturdays through Sept. 4.
Despite the decrease in illegal fireworks calls, there have been problems.
Dr. Mark Grevious, chair of plastic and reconstructive surgery at Cook County Health, said his health system has already seen three significant injuries resulting from fireworks, a number he considers high before the actual holiday.
“We actually have had more injuries prior to the Fourth of July than we typically have,” he said. “Now we’re just beginning to emerge from the throes of the pandemic, and that’s likely why.”
Grevious said many of the children admitted to the hospital for burns came due to holding sparklers, which typically burn at 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. Chicago fire district Chief Walter Schroeder said a third of all emergency room visits, of all ages, over the Fourth of July weekend are caused by sparklers.
“We get adults who are handling these fireworks, which are illegal, (and) sometimes alcohol plays a part in it,” Schroeder said. “They’re celebrating and they lose the perspective of the dangers. It’s the thought process that this isn’t going to happen to me.”
The Fire Department is preparing for large crowds over the weekend, especially by the beaches, Schroeder said. Paramedics will be out on bikes, and additional staff will be on duty to deal not only with fireworks but also the shootings that often increase over the holiday weekend.
“Please leave fireworks to the professionals,” Schroeder said. “If you have to light it, leave it alone. The potential of something happening is too great. Firework injuries are preventable.”
People who wish to turn in illegal fireworks can take them to a police station to have them disposed.
The Chicago Police Department said in a statement that its primary focus over the weekend “remains on preventing and responding to violent crime,” but officers will continue to respond to all calls of service.
“If residents report suspected illegal possession of fireworks in their neighborhood, we will respond and investigate accordingly,” the statement said.
Joe Zaradich IV, a manager of Phantom Fireworks in Merrillville, Indiana, said sales have increased from last year.
“Last year because of the cancellation of the shows, we saw an increase as well,” Zaradich said.
There is a shortage in fireworks because the pandemic caused a slowdown in manufacturing, Zaradich said. His store ordered double what it did last year. A third of the store’s order has yet to arrive.
“The good thing is that the product we didn’t get yet will get here after (the Fourth of July), so we can stock our shelves.”
Eli Washington, chairman of the Chesterfield Community Council, said he hears fireworks going off in Tuley (Murray) Park until 2 or 3 a.m. It’s been going on for the past two or three months, he said.
Washington said the council sent an email to the Park District and the local police commander the week before the holiday, “asking them to really step up.” He said the commander responded and said there would be bike patrols in the area.
“It’s so goofy and stupid people are popping it in the middle of the day.,” he said. “You can’t see nothing when people are popping that stuff in the middle of the afternoon. We just gotta get back to people respecting their neighbors.”
In other areas of the city, illegal fireworks haven’t been as much of an issue but remain a concern.
Sandra Wortham is president of the Nat King Cole Park Council and lives with her family directly across from the Chatham neighborhood park. Her concern is that fireworks may land on someone’s roof and spark a fire.
Last year, Block Club Chicago and ABC 7 reported on a Gresham couple whose home of 50 years was destroyed in a blaze that was likely caused by fireworks.
“Last year, they were definitely out there, doing a lot of fireworks,” she said. “It’s dangerous to the person of course, but as a resident and homeowner it’s concerning because the sparks can fly onto a roof. ... I don’t think they should celebrate it in a way that makes us less safe.”
Wortham said she likes to sit outside and watch when people are igniting fireworks just to make sure nothing goes wrong and that someone can act quickly if it does. The police and Fire Department do what they can, she said, but they’re overworked.
“If you look at the priority calls, it’s shots-fired calls and firework calls. You know how that goes,” she said. “They respond as they can, but they have to get there, and obviously, especially on a holiday weekend, they’re going to get a lot of calls that aren’t related to fireworks and related to actual violent crimes.”
— Sandra Wortham is president of the Nat King Cole Park Council