Firefighters have warned Kiwis to think twice before lighting up the night sky this Guy Fawkes as fireworks go on sale today.
Fire and Emergency NZ said crews responded to 166 fireworks-related incidents last year, the highest number since 2019. Nine of them were structure fires.
National manager for community readiness and recovery Adrian Nacey told Breakfast this week that the organisation would support tighter public restrictions on the sale of fireworks.
“Our job is to protect people, property and the environment from fire, and fireworks really do clash with that goal,” Nacey said.
“We’re not calling for an outright ban, but we would support further limits on retail sales to the general public.”
Currently, fireworks can be sold for four days each day, starting November 2, and only to those aged 18 and over.
Nacey said the bigger problem was how and where fireworks were used.
“You can only set them off on private property or somewhere you’ve got the landowner’s permission. That means no beaches, no council parks and definitely not public spaces where fireworks are banned.”
FENZ’s Adrian Nacey said crews responded to 166 callouts last Guy Fawkes, making it the worst year for fires caused by fireworks since 2019. (Source: Breakfast)
Recent weather patterns had created dangerous conditions for fire spread, Nacey said.
“The wind is the big one. It’s unpredictable and it’s what turns a fun night into a dangerous situation. We’ve seen how quickly fires can spread when the conditions are wrong and right now, they’re not great.”
He encouraged people to check local fire danger levels at checkitsalright.nz before lighting anything.
“If it’s windy, just don’t do it. Wait for a still night. And when you do set them off, make sure it’s in a wide, flat, open space away from anything flammable.”
Community pages had already been lighting up with complaints about fireworks being set off prior to legal sales beginning, he added.
“Unfortunately, fireworks have become a year-round issue. People are stockpiling them and setting them off over summer, which is when the fire risk is at its highest, hot, dry, windy conditions. We really urge people not to hoard them.”
He urged people to take basic safety precautions, including always pointing fireworks straight up and not towards people, pets or buildings, letting neighbours know in advance, keeping a hose or bucket of water nearby, and soaking used fireworks in water before binning them.
“If you’re going to use fireworks, do it responsibly. Better yet, go to a public display and leave it to the professionals.”
