Why the threat of firework-related fires could still be an issue in Mid-Missouri

Tomorrow night, the sky across Mid-Missouri will light up with red, white, and blue to celebrate the 4th of July. If you take a look around your neighborhood, the landscape tells a story of extreme relief. Our lawns are vibrant, the fields are lush, and the dusty, cracked soil from our winter dry spell has completely vanished.

But as fire crews and meteorologists prepare for the holiday weekend, there is a warning that is being passed around: do not let the green scenery trick you into a false sense of security.

Nationally, this summer has already taken a brutal toll. Severe, long-term drought conditions across the Western United States have fueled volatile wildfires, scorching more than two million acres across the country.

Here in Missouri, we have experienced an absolute atmospheric flip-flop. At the start of the year, nearly 95% of the state was locked in a stubborn drought. However, relentless rounds of heavy spring rainfall completely reversed the trend, wiping out drought conditions across Central Missouri. While our deep soil moisture is fully recharged, the immediate fire risk on the 4th of July depends entirely on the top half inch of land and how fast the afternoon sun can bake it.

Materials like dead grass, pine needles, and landscaping mulch are all known as one-hour fine fuels. This means they react almost instantly to the atmosphere around them.

Ryan Benedict, the Recruitment and Retention Division Manager with the Boone County Fire Protection District, states, "Anything that's dead, any grass, any leaves, any vegetation, any trees that are dead, there's no moisture in those plants, and so easily those are going to ignite whenever they catch embers from fireworks and that sort of thing, but most typically what we'll see catch on fire this time of year are disposed of fireworks and then what they get disposed in."

The timing of these emergencies also catches many residents off guard. Ryan says, "Right around dusk and then into the night is typically whenever we'll start getting calls for service."

While our weather pattern gives us a massive head start compared to the severe droughts of recent years, safety ultimately rests on basic precautions and keeping a close eye on the short-term forecast, all while properly disposing of fireworks that have been set off. Ryan warns that, "We will typically respond to dumpster fires or trash can fires that may happen to be in somebody's garage, so we try to ask people to kind of avoid that."

It is also good practice to set off one firework at a time. If a fire does occur, calling a professional rather than trying to put it out yourself is best practice, as they have taken years of practice in the event of something like this occurring.

Enjoy the holiday, keep a close eye on the evening breeze, and remember to submerge all spent fireworks in a bucket of water overnight before tossing them into the garage trash bin.