The tents have returned.
Fireworks are for sale. And they are not real cheap, either. Firework stands are set up outside of city limits countywide and in places where the use and possession is legal.
In Mustang, fireworks are legal. Not so in city limits of Yukon or Oklahoma City. The possession of fireworks is prohibited.
I made an annual stop at a fireworks stand in a legal area this week too look at what was for sale these days. The ones that don’t make much noise are usually the ones I buy to take to trips to Grand Lake. State parks prohibit fireworks. But private property in Delaware County allows fireworks there. So, sparklers have been pretty safe for us in recent years with three children who can hold them carefully under adult supervision.
The flowering bloom ones that spin with colors are a favorite. They do send off a flame that can cause a wildfire. A paper chicken with a whistler inside that shoots sparks seems harmless, but watch out for the fiery tailfeather.
Bottle rockets were the cause of a lot of fires on roofs that were wooden I recall, when I was young, 50 years ago. Parts of the hammock at home could be used as a bottle rocket-firing lead pipe, I remember. There were bottle rocket wars of the past that didn’t end terribly for me. But there were those children who lost an eye or a limb, and one whose shirt caught fire when he was hit, I remember hearing.
Fireworks cause injuries every year, hospitals report. They also cause fires every year.
As for smoke bombs. I remember as a child in an unincorporated area that could catch the grass on fire and they worked best on the driveway pavement. Smoke bombs too are illegal in city limits.
The “Hen Laying Eggs” fireworks looked hilarious. The paper chickens have a fuse as a tail feather and a warning on them too.
“Caution. Emits showers of sparks. Carefully read other cautions on the bottom.”
I did not read the bottom of the chicken. At home, the email came from the homeowners association.
Fireworks are strictly prohibited from the housing addition, it warned.
Even if you live in an unincorporated part of the county where the use is not illegal on private property, that is with landowner permission, of course, you may not be able to use them in a housing addition.
Be careful with the fireworks, whatever you choose to do with them this Fourth of July.
The big fireworks shows of course, for Yukon, and the surrounding area, will be 10 p.m. Friday, July 3 and again at 10 p.m. Saturday, July 4 at Chisholm Trail Park.
I bet the lights will be seen in Piedmont, for those who don’t attend. Piedmont is not having a fireworks show this year due to the coronavius.
There will be a lot of fireworks used in the city limits I’m sure. For those who choose to break the law, remember there are dogs and humans with anxiety or post traumatic stress syndrome or other reasons that loud explosions all night can worsen. So be considerate about those super loud fireworks.
The upcoming Fourth of July holiday is a good time to make homemade ice cream and to cut up a few watermelons.
If you are growing watermelons in central Oklahoma, it is not likely you are eating your own by July 4 this year. The vines in my garden are growing now and spreading, especially with the recent rains. Hopefully by Labor Day, there will be a big one. I’ll check in with the Canadian County Master Gardeners to see how other watermelons are doing in the county soon.
Read The Yukon Progress and yukonprogress.com for local news updates
