Be mindful of fireworks laws throughout the holiday weekend
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - If you're planning on grabbing your own fireworks for the weekend, there are some laws you need to keep in mind.
Fireworks are fun - but not all of them are legal to use just in your backyard.
There are some safety tips and laws police and sellers want you to know before shooting them off this weekend.
Bottle rockets, sparklers, and missile rockets are some of the names of the most popular fireworks you'll hear this Fourth of July weekend.
But just because they're popular doesn't mean they're all legal to use.
"Party poppers, snakes, all the stuff the kids like, what we do have here is obviously all legal," assistant manager Tyler Stawski said. Stawski helps run the Phantom Fireworks shop in Monroeville.
"These are all things you can take with the family and put on the street real quick, police wouldn't stop you, as long as you're not past the noise ordinance and doing something you shouldn't be doing."
According to Pennsylvania State Police, "Class C" or "consumer-grade" fireworks are all clear.
These would be firecrackers, bottle rockets, and anything that contains a maximum of 50 milligrams of explosive material.
Display fireworks on the other hand — have 130 milligrams of explosive materials and are off-limits and only allowed by professionals with a permit.
"These are the ones I mentioned about the law being 150 feet away from an occupied building if you don't own it. If you have neighbors, make sure they're cool with it," Stawski added.
Cory Lotis says he and his family are well aware of the laws. They buy thousands of dollars in fireworks each year and celebrate safely from home.
"We only have two people that set them off and we set them off on boards that are glued down and everybody's up by the house and we're by the field since we have property down below with a wood line between us," Lotis said.
And he says they're teaching the kids safety, too.
"Growing up, they know how to set them off and safety and be back. All the kids have glasses on and gloves," Lotis said.
Even with the safety you also can't use fireworks just anywhere: public or private property without permission, inside of a car or building, or if you're under the influence are all off-limits.
Everybody's goal is to have a fun Independence Day while staying out of trouble. That's why Pennslyvania State Police are asking everybody to stay safe and follow the fireworks code of conduct.