The Southwest Voice

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With the Fourth of July holiday upon us, the Fireworks Task Force would like to encourage families celebrating with fireworks to be safe and responsible to eliminate injuries and any incidents of fire. The Kern County Fire Department’s Arson Investigations Unit along with the Kern County’s Sheriff’s Office operates the Fireworks Task Force through July 3, 4, and 5.

The Task Force assigns nine teams over the three days, increasing to 18 teams on July 4, consisting of one fire fighter and one sheriff’s deputy to administer citations to those possessing illegal fireworks and/or using fireworks outside of the permissible period of use. The fine for the citation issued for using illegal fireworks totals $1,500 and the fine for using fireworks outside of the time allowed is $500.

The manpower for this task force is paid with the fines from the citations. The Fireworks Task Force will have a hotline in operation on the 3rd, 4th and 5th of July. The number is 868-6070.

For more information on fireworks safety, log on to: www.fireworksafety.com.