Residents filed far fewer complaints about illegal fireworks on July 4th and the days leading up to it this year than they did last year — and there were significantly fewer outside fires.
Lt. Jason Fejer, a spokesperson for Albuquerque Fire Rescue, said in a news release that all reports of illegal fireworks were routed through 311 and the 311 app and uploaded to a mapping system to generate heat maps showing where the most activity was.
He said the Fire Marshal’s Office sent two inspectors in their Fireworks Education Unit (FEU) to patrol the areas that were generating the most calls and saw the most activity last year.
“The FEU’s primary objectives are public education, inspections of fireworks vendors and responding to reports of illegal fireworks dispatched by the Fire Marshal,” Fejer wrote.
Complaints about fireworks:
July 1 to July 3: 426
July 4: 856
Total: 1,291
“Cease and desist” orders: 168
Fejer said there were around 700 fewer complaints about fireworks this year compared to last year. However, he said the department issues more “cease and desist” orders — 168 this year compared to 123 last year.
Fire crews also responded to 49 outside fires on July 4 through the morning hours of July 5. Last year they responded to 140 outside fires.
Fejer said due to hot weather and drought conditions, AFR upped its patrols of Open Space and the Bosque over the holiday. He said seven “wildland apparatus” patrolled the areas with the highest fire danger and were available to respond to calls but no significant events were reported.
“Recent moisture is a big factor in the reduction of outside fires and no significant events occurring in Albuquerque’s Open Space and Bosque,” Fejer said.
Fire Marshal Jason Garcia thanked everyone who complied with firework restrictions and who reported illegal fireworks and said he shared residents’ concerns and frustrations.
“The 4th of July is always one of the most challenging nights of the year for our department and we will continue to meet the challenge and to do everything we can to keep our community safe,” he said.
Since Abq officials were on the local news EVERY day telling us that NO citations have been issued for 6 years & that they can’t do anything unless perpetrators are literally caught “red handed”…why waste your time calling…seems that the only rights that conscientious law abiding citizens have in Abq is to have them trampled on & ignored!
We simply didn’t bother trying to complain this year because it’s futile. In my neighborhood in the International District, east of the Fairgrounds, it was like a war zone, the air thick with smoke, and the booms went on till about 3 am last night. The night before it was 2 am. We have to brace for more tonight.
The lack of any sort of caring or compassion for other people and for animals astounds me. Not to mention the willingness to put themselves and their families in danger. I feel powerless to do anything about these extreme, and extremely illegal, fireworks and it’s pretty depressing at this point.
The biggest comment I’ve been reading is that people didn’t bother to call it in because when the called in years past- NOTHING HAPPENED. It was like a freakin war zone on the Westside last night and, no doubt, will be all weekend. Nothing happens to these people.
There were more fireworks in my area this year than previous years. I tried to make a complaint but after waiting 15 minutes I gave up. After all, KOAT reported that violators never get citations and I was so stressed by the noise that continued long after midnight that I didn’t think I could be polite to the person answering my call. So what was the point. The noise wasn’t going to stop until my neighbors ran out of things to go boom.
But it did make me think. Why don’t we trust the police? Because they don’t seem to care about things that citizens care about. Property crimes, domestic violence and sexual assault (always believe the men, not the women, right officers?), stressful and illegal fireworks, all the things that make us feel safe. But protecting each other? Getting lots of overtime? Not testing rape kits? Corrupt practices, shooting mentally ill people? Protecting privilege? They’re good at that. A few years ago a police car in pursiut of a suspect got into a minor wreck with the chasee. No one was hurt, both cars drove away, suspect was nabbed. But a dozen cop cars showed up and stayed for hours. All I could think was “Didn’t those officers have other calls to respond to, other people who needed help?” I’ve given up. On any given call it seems the police either don’t care or make the situation worse.