Last updated on June 28, 2020
We’ve all noticed that there has been an increase in renegade fireworks being shot off across the city this month. There have been so many complaints to the city that Mayor Walsh created a task force to tackle the issue of illegal fireworks.
“Fireworks are a serious issue not only in the city of Boston, but all across the country. People lose sleep, babies get woken up, some people with PTSD experience real harms, pets are terrified and they’re fire hazards,” said Mayor Walsh.
Fireworks calls to the Boston Police Department were up by 5,543% in June 2020 compared to the previous June, according to a city press release. There were 139 calls last June and 7,844 as of June 26, 2020.
The task force will include the Mayor’s Chief of Civic Engagement, the four At-Large City Councilors, the Boston Arson Squad (Fire Investigation Unit), the Boston Police Department’s Bureau of Community Engagement, and community leaders. The other members of the task force will be announced this week.
At-Large City Councilor Julia Mejia has been very focused on the issue of illegal fireworks by leading online discussions to solve the problem. Mejia has asked residents for suggestions about how to combat illegal fireworks.
For the last month, we’ve been really mindful of the #FireworksTrauma in our city. Our office has dedicated time & resources to building a community centered approach to this issue. We are excited to partner with the @CityOfBoston & @marty_walsh to push this work forward. pic.twitter.com/MC19Y3MXxd
— Julia Mejia (@juliaforboston) June 26, 2020
The city has said that residents should call 911 if they want a police response when they hear or see fireworks being displayed in their neighborhood. Residents can report the illegal purchasing or selling of fireworks, which they can do so anonymously by contacting the CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1-800-494-TIPS or by texting the word ‘TIP’ to CRIME (27463).
