Repeal Michigan Fireworks Law Petition Blows Up On Internet

As it has every year since Michigan lawmakers legalized the use of fireworks at backyard parties and other private gatherings around the Fourth of July and other national holidays, calls for the repeal of the state law have blown up. More than 35,000 Michiganders have signed a long-running internet petition, punctuating their signatures with comments like this one by Richard Connelly, of Trenton:

“Bad for war vets, dogs, babies, old folks and people in general. They are a fire hazard and encourage irresponsibility. The only people who benefit are the businesses and some tax money. Not worth the negatives, particularly the human element.”

The law that took effect in 2012 technically allows the use of consumer fireworks between 8 a.m. and midnight the day before, the day of and the day after major U.S. holidays, but critics say the noise goes on outside of the legal period and police either don’t have the resources to enforce the law or are disinterested.

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The state has an interest in keeping the law — about $1.6 million in firework tax revenue, though that’s down from the more than $2 million the state made off consumer-grade fireworks the year prior.

The trade-off isn’t worth it, petitioners wrote.

Consider three seemingly nonstop days of bomb-like booms, smoke trails and a steady pop-pop-pop from the point of view of Ruth Bradshaw, a Waterford resident who was a youngster in England during World War II. She wrote on the moveon.org petition site calling for the repeal of Michigan’s fireworks law that decades later, she is still haunted by the “deafening sounds of bombs exploding and running to shelters.”

“Many of our friends and loved ones weren't as lucky as my family and did not survive,” she wrote. “You need to keep this in mind that there are people out there, including our veterans, with very vivid images of what happened to them and, unfortunately, all of this is brought back to mind with the blasting noise and sound of the fireworks.”

“For the love of God, our veterans that suffer from PTSD don’t need to be reminded of war,” Donald Sabourin, of Bay City, agreed.

• Tell Us: Should Michigan’s consumer fireworks law be repealed or amended? Please tell us what you think in the comments, and share your experiences with legal fireworks in Michigan.

Another Waterford resident, Teresa Kuzniarski, said she was watering her gardens when a firework exploded over her head and another one landed in her neighbor’s garage, almost setting it on fire.

She says her house is sound, but the fireworks are so loud they’ve rattled the windows and deprived her of sleep.

“Oh, and the not overly bright people that shoot fireworks in (their) yard with (their) pets and other people’s pets out in (their) yards with kids running around, what can you say to the utter stupidity?” she wrote on the petition site.

• See Also: Man Uses Fireworks To Get Rid Of Bees, Burns Garage

Carol Mason, of Lake Orion, says she has a bad heart and hearing fireworks “night after night sure doesn’t help.”

It feels like she’s living in a war zone, she wrote.

“I feel sorry for all of our men and women who return from the war zone and have to listen to the awful noise,” she said, adding that “loud fireworks, in my opinion, are disrespecting these men and women.”

Kathryn Holzgen of Wyoming, Michigan, feels the pain.

“Nobody abides by the rules about the days and times, and when police are called, all they do is issue repeated warnings,” Holzgen wrote. “You have veterans with PTSD, people with small children being continually awakened by thoughtless neighbors at all hours, and animal owners who have to keep their pets drugged just to make it through ‘fireworks season’ — and make no mistake, it goes on for a whole season!

Your Neighbors Speak Out
Residents of the following southeast Michigan community had a lot to say about fireworks. Click on the links for more:
Clinton Township
St. Clair Shores
Dearborn
Plymouth-Canton
Royal Oak
Troy
Rochester-Rochester Hills

“This is not to mention the inherent danger to both the people lighting them, and the surrounding property. Just a few years ago, a huge Catholic church not far from where I live (St. Mary Magdalene, in Kentwood) burned down from neighborhood fireworks. I'm terrified the same will happen to my house every year when my neighbors on all sides have a competition for who can shoot off the best fireworks. The houses here in Wyoming are very close together, and the fireworks are exploding over my house and garage. The debris that is rained down on my property for months at a time is no picnic either. For the people and animals I mentioned earlier, and those of us who want and need to get a good night's sleep for work the next day, it feels like being held hostage in our own homes. This is WRONG, and it needs to be addressed.”

West Bloomfield veterinarian Dr. Patricia Pillsbury said animals are traumatized and spooked by the fireworks.

“As a veterinarian, I see so many animals panicked and injured by their reaction to fireworks,” she wrote. “Four horses had to be put down in the barn down the street from my friend’s house, when they panicked and ran through a fence. Enough!”

Jennifer Bulman, of Warren, said she dreads the Fourth of July more with each passing year.

“It used to be bad enough when these things were illegal, but it’s totally out of control now,” Bulman wrote. “I can’t leave my house because my pets are so traumatized when the idiots around me start blowing these things up.”

Bulman said an acquaintance lost half of his house to a fire that started from firework debris that landed on his roof.

Donna Hoffman, of Grosse Pointe Woods, said she’s “terrified” that fireworks are launched by people who aren’t pyrotechnics professionals.

“I was terrified over both the Memorial and Fourth of July holiday by the ‘ordnance’ neighbors were using,” Hoffman wrote. “To allow untrained people to use such powerful fireworks is unthinkable! Please repeal the Fireworks safety act 256 of 2011. I understand this will eliminate the tax revenue. Don't I have the right to a peaceful holiday?”

Rosemary Tokatlian, who lives nearby in Grosse Pointe Park, agrees.

“Please repeal this law. My neighbors do not adhere to the law and there is no enforcement of the law — municipalities do not have the resources to deal with it. The noise pollution degrades our quality of life in Michigan. It is stressful for animals of all types as well as humans. Please get rid of all types of fireworks and only allow them to be set off by professionals.”

(AP Photo/Jim Cole)