After two fires in the area last year, Wilmington firefighters are warning people to be careful this Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Battalion Chief Sammy Flowers said fireworks that leave the ground and explode are illegal in our state.
“The big thing with fireworks when they leave the ground is you lose that whole element of control," Flowers said. "When you light it, you back away and it goes up, you don’t know if it is going straight up of here to the right or the left."
Last year, illegal fireworks set the roof of Old Time Pottery on fire.
“The situation could have been a lot worse if it was a little bit later at night,” Flowers said. “Luckily, someone rode by and saw the smoke and called it in, in a quick amount of time. However, if it was later, say, if it was 3:00 or 4:00 in the morning, you don’t have that much traffic, it could have burned a lot worse, maybe closed the business indefinitely.”
Still, the fire caused about $10,000 in damage. A second fire last Fourth of July damaged a fence and generator.
To make sure no illegal fireworks are sold in Wilmington, Flowers said firefighters will randomly inspect tents that have been set up.