The city of Pittsburgh’s Fireworks Task Force is back this year to crack down fireworks.
The eight-member task force is made up of police officers and firefighters.
If you decide to observe the Fourth of July holiday with a bang, the task force will be on the lookout for dangerous and destructive fireworks from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. every night until July 5.
“Our main concern is structure fires from results from misusing fireworks and more importantly injuries,” said Wendell Hissrich, the city’s public safety director.
Last year, a fire at the abandoned Horace Mann School was sparked by fireworks. There were seven structure fires, several brush fires, reported injuries and multiple noise complaints in the city last year. The task force handed out 22 citations.
This year, the task force is using the ShotSpotter alert system to detect loud, illegal booms.