LAKEPORT >> With Independence Day only weeks away, fireworks enthusiasts and vendors are not the only ones preparing for the festivities. The Lakeport Police Department is working on an Illegal Fireworks Police Operation Plan that will go into effect from June 17 through July 16, a 30-day period surrounding the Fourth of July.
“Though most of sales and use of fireworks happen nearer on the Fourth, this 30-day period is our period of peak activity as summer gets going,” Lakeport Police Chief Brad Rasmussen said.
Under the Lakeport Municipal Code, the Police Department is required to present an operation plan. Rasmussen presented the finalized plan at a recent council meeting. It was unanimously approved, 5-0.
The identification of areas in Lakeport where illegal fireworks have been a problem, as well as an explanation of law enforcement and fire placement to handle identified areas were among the items listed in the operation plan.
The Department has identified “The Parklands” and “Will-O-Point” as the areas most affected by illegal fireworks during the 30-day activity period in previous years. In response, the operation plan states there will be routine patrolling throughout those dates, with officers on foot patrol to target and seek out illegal fireworks violators.
Other areas that were not deemed as “troublesome” will also see patrol units to ensure safety. A command post is also anticipated to be set up at City Hall.
In a staff report presented to council members, the importance of orchestrating a plan to increase staff and send out public notifications regarding the use and discharge of legal fireworks was highlighted.
“There are significant increases in the number of visitors to our city during the July 4 holiday and the 30-day period surrounding it,” the report stated. “The number of visitors to the city peaks on July 4 as many people arrive to enjoy fireworks-related activities. In order to provide for the proper public safety, the Police Department increases its staffing levels as much as possible in the period surrounding July 4. During the fireworks show on July 4, the Police Department deploys all of our staff as well as mutual aid staff from other law enforcement agencies in Lake County.”
The council urged the department to include a special section in the operation plan dedicated to assuring there is a clean and safe holiday, with an equal emphasis on clean.
“What we noticed this year was that we had quite a problem with large amounts of fireworks trash being left on both city and private properties last year,” Rasmussen said. “The Police Department received calls from many citizens concerned about the trash. The groups that were selling fireworks have been involved in some of the clean-up in the past, but that did not occur last year or the year before. With the assistance of the City Clerk’s office, we reached out to those groups and requested that they come up with a plan to help clean up those areas after this year’s fireworks.”
The report said that because fireworks sales group hold a clean-up process responsibility, they have been asked to develop a plan to address the aftermath issue.
Rasmussen added that it is important to have this executed because he believes “the City ordinance dictates that they (the City) has the responsibility for the clean-up,” but he certainly would not like to place that responsibility there. “We (the Police Department) would like to see more clean-up in some of these areas and not see so much garbage for businesses or the City to have to deal with by themselves.”
In response to the operation plan, City Council member Kenneth Parlet commended Rasmussen for moving forward with this particular type of movement. He said, “I am sure that there is a lot of people that are involved in selling fireworks that would be happy to participate in cleaning up were they aware of the fact that it was such a big problem. People come from all over to see and be a part of the 4th of July celebration in Lakeport, so I think the Chief communicating with them and creating a cohesive effort to address this is great.”
Both Police and Fire departments are set to meet with sales groups and companies that sell safe-and-sane fireworks within the next couple of weeks to discuss a final clean-up plan.
