Fireworks seized by Ridge Meadows RCMP
Ridge Meadows RCMP seized 1,117 fireworks on Halloween.
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Updated: November 02, 2009 3:44 PM
Bangs and blasts were heard across Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge on Halloween, despite a ban on fireworks in both communities.
Ridge Meadows RCMP seized a table-full of pyrotechnics – including Roman candles, air bombs, bottle rockets and screecheroos – while fielding 109 calls on Saturday night and into Sunday morning.
Although calls kept officers on their feet, fireworks seizures dropped to 1,117 from 2,034 last year, 11,000 in 2007 and 22,000 in 2006.
"It seems to me that a lot of people were not obeying the ban," said Maple Ridge fire chief Peter Grootendorst.
Since 2005, the sale, purchase and firing of fireworks in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows has been restricted to individuals who hold a certificate from Natural Resources Canada’s Explosives Regulatory Division. The course costs $100.
The fireworks bylaw allows RCMP, bylaws officials and firefighters to ticket offenders with fines of $1,000 for selling fireworks and $200 for setting them off without a permit.
Grootendorst said it might be time for another education campaign to advise residents about the ban.
"If it continues on, we will have to step up enforcement," he added.
In Pitt Meadows, the fire department attended only a few calls related to the bylaw.
"A few people were enjoying some fireworks, although they shouldn't have," said assistant fire chief Rob Chatton. "They were all co-operative in handing them over."
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