Oakland sees fivefold increase in fires over July Fourth, driven by illegal fireworks

San Francisco Chronicle​

3 days ago

Oakland saw a fivefold escalation of fires over the July Fourth holiday due to illegal fireworks, which kept firefighters racing across the city — but saw no human fatalities, a fire department spokesperson said Saturday.
Two dogs died and one person was taken to the hospital with smoke inhalation when illegal fireworks sparked a dramatic house fire around 10:30 p.m. Friday, the Oakland Fire Department reported.
More than 30 firefighters attacked that blaze, as flames leapt from a two-story residential duplex in the 1600 block of 78th Avenue. The first responders had the blaze under control by 11:14 p.m., the fire department posted on social media sites.
That fire was one of 64 across the city on Independence Day — far more than the 12 to 15 that burn in Oakland over a typical 24-hour period, said fire department spokesperson Michael Hunt, adding that the increase was 'definitely' because of illegal fireworks.
'Anything over 20 is a very busy day. Over 30 would be exceptional,' Hunt said. Over 60 fires was 'extremely taxing.'
Not all of the Oakland fires were connected to fireworks, including the largest blaze of the day: a four-alarm inferno that broke out around 5 p.m. at a warehouse on the 5200 block of East Eighth Street, about a mile north of the Oakland Coliseum. No injuries were reported.
As soon as crews were released from that fire, they 'immediately began driving to a vegetation fire at the top of 98th Avenue that spread to about half an acre,' Hunt said. 'It just showed the relentlessness of the day.'
On social media, the fire department thanked the often unrecognized groups that contributed to the unusual day, saying, 'Strong work by all our dispatchers, fire operations & emergency management personnel.'
The growth in fire activity on the holiday capped what has been a tragic July Fourth season in the Bay Area and Lake Tahoe. Dozens of communities canceled their fireworks displays after a Yolo County fireworks warehouse blew up three days before the holiday. Some Bay Area communities canceled their sanctioned shows due to fire risk, while Lake Tahoe halted a show after a fireworks barge sank Thursday.
It's unclear whether such cancellations lead more people to set off do-it-yourself fireworks celebrations, which are largely against the law in California.
Fireworks without an 'Office of the State Fire Marshal Safe and Sane' seal on the package are illegal. Also, individual communities often ban the use or possession of fireworks altogether, with fines of up to $50,000 and a year in jail, according to the state's website.
Still, many Californians visit Nevada to purchase fireworks and bring them back into the state in defiance of the prohibitions.
California reports that even before the July Fourth season began, officials seized more than 600,000 pounds of illegal fireworks this year.
In Oakland, all of the city's fire stations were fully staffed and operational, Hunt said, noting that the region took other steps to keep people safe.
The city deployed roving fire engines patrolling the Oakland hills, which have a lot of dry vegetation, to immediately report any fire activity.
And for the fourth year, Berkeley and the East Bay Regional Parks District closed off Grizzly Peak between Centennial Drive and Skyline Boulevard for 24 hours to reduce the possibility of illegal fireworks in that area.