Heading into the Fourth of July, some wondered what Vancouver’s fireworks ban would mean for the rest of Clark County.
Would the county’s other cities deal with additional chaos from people leaving Vancouver to launch fireworks, or would it be the normal holiday chaos residents in the rest of Clark County are used to?
“We didn’t know quite what to expect,” Ridgefield City Manager Steve Stuart said. “We were certainly interested in whether we’d see more (activity) due to the restrictions in other Clark County cities. Anecdotally, we didn’t see a huge difference.”
Randy Miller, deputy fire marshal with the Camas-Washougal Fire Department, said he didn’t feel like it was any busier than previous years in Camas and Washougal. Both cities had new ordinances go into effect this year, with Camas limiting fireworks discharge to July 3 and 4 and Washougal limiting fireworks use to July 4.
“Both cities responded very well,” Miller said. “I didn’t notice anything unusual. The third was very quiet. For the most part, it was quiet after the end of legal hours.”
Clark County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Fred Neiman said, anecdotally, he felt like there was more fireworks activity out in the county Tuesday night, a sentiment he heard from neighbors and on the sheriff’s office Facebook page.
Neiman spoke to officers who worked swing shift — typically 3 p.m. to 3 a.m. — Tuesday night, and they told him they were “a little bit busier” than past years, but not too much so. They were asked to assist in response to a few smaller fires.
Miller said he responded to three small fires, and he and the rest of the department will still have to review all their work from the holiday to know for certain if this year was similar to previous years.
He also had some advice for the future, including to put used fireworks in buckets of water overnight. Miller said it’s dangerous to leave them piled up outside or in the garage. There wasn’t a call for it, but he was sent a picture of a plastic city-issued garbage can that melted down after someone put fireworks in it.
Miller also said residents should seek out professional firework shows, like the one at the Port of Camas-Washougal.
Two nights of fireworks
Stuart thought one reason Ridgefield didn’t appear to see an increase in fireworks use was because the city had two nearby professional shows: one at the Ilani Casino Resort on Sunday and one hosted by the Ridgefield Fourth of July Committee Tuesday night near the Port of Ridgefield.
Part of the idea behind the committee’s show was to try and limit residents launching fireworks in the city, according to the committee’s website. Stuart said casino officials scheduled their show so as to not interfere with the committee’s show, giving residents two nights where they had the option to view professional shows.
“They were a welcome addition to the celebration of the Fourth of July,” Stuart said. “It gave people safe alternatives.”
