Over the Fourth of July holiday, the Bellevue Police Department reports that five $1,000 citations were given out, three written warnings and countless verbal warnings to residents illegally setting off fireworks. The “success” is in part due to the 153 firework reports made using a temporary heat map tool, new for the city this year.
“We’re going to take a look at all of the data online, feedback and the plan right now is to have it back next year,” Meeghan Black, Bellevue PD spokesperson said.
NORCOM — the dispatch center fielding Bellevue’s calls — received 533 emergency calls on July 4, about a 20-percent increase from a typical day, Black said. One of the calls was associated with a fire and 34 calls were related to fireworks. It was a slight decrease compared to last year.