A busy night for fireworks in San Bruno

“No matter what we do, it does not stop rampant illegal fireworks use,” he said. “It’s sort of important to note, in my expert professional opinion, this is not stoppable.”

The city has also been struggling with cost recovery for public safety fees incurred during the Fourth of July, with last year’s costs totaling $99,153. San Bruno can no longer legally charge local nonprofits that fundraise with safe-and-sane fireworks sales the full cost of those fees, prompting conversation around stopping the practice altogether.

This year’s cost for fireworks enforcement should total around $76,513, with around $43,000 of that used on police and fire staffing and logistics, Johansen said. All 47 police staff members were required to work the holiday, he said, with many putting in a 16-hour workday.

Illegal fireworks use was condensed into a smaller time period this year, Johansen said, making it more challenging to issue citations, which can only be administered if officers see the use in person.

“The reality is it does make enforcement increasingly difficult, because now we have an even shorter window of time, with somewhat limited resources,” he said.

Citations cost $1,000 per violation, and of 15 individuals cited, eight were San Bruno residents, according to Johansen. That marks a significant downturn from 2023, when 26 citations were issued, and from 2022, which saw 25 citations.

Fireworks-related police calls were comparable to that of Pacifica — the only other San Mateo County city that allows safe-and-sane fireworks sales — which saw 93 calls. Other cities in the area, which do not allow fireworks sales, also saw high numbers of fireworks-related incident reports: Daly City fielded 48 calls and South San Francisco 107.

San Bruno also saw 12 fire-related deployments but no structure fires.

“We’re blessed we did not have structure fires. South City had a three-alarm [fire], two homes severely damaged. Some of our fire apparatus and personnel were there,” Mayor Rico Medina said. “It is an arduous process in which to try to do what you do, so thank you.”

Residents with video evidence of illegal fireworks use are encouraged to send it to the police department, which may be able to issue citations based on a social host ordinance that charges individuals hosting gatherings with responsibility for any illegal firework use.

“The interesting thing I heard tonight was if you have video, then contact the police department, and there’s potential there could be some enforcement associated with that,” Councilmember Marty Medina said.

San Bruno resident Matt Jones suggested that the tradition of fireworks sales was no longer something the city “needs to have or keep” based on increases to noise and air pollution, negative impact to veterans and those with post-traumatic stress disorder and fire danger.

“Given the fact that we’re in a state right now that is basically a tinderbox, I think trying to ignite more things is probably not a good idea,” he said. “I just wanted to ask if the cost outweighs the benefits here.”