If you’re looking to buy fireworks and are scratching your head over what’s legal and what’s not, this note from state fire marshal Charles M. Duffy (via the Washington State Patrol) should clear things up.
“All legal consumer fireworks packed for sale in Washington have to meet seven main requirements,” Duffy stated in a WSP news release.
Quoting from that release, the seven requirements are:
Duffy also offered up a handful of warning signs that may signal your fireworks are illegal:
1. They weren't purchased from a licensed fireworks stand.
2. They aren't packaged in bright colors and have safety warnings on the packaging.
3. The packaging doesn't indicate the country of manufacture.
4. It's not wrapped in bright colorful paper, typically wrapped with plain brown paper.
5. It's a solid red, silver or brown in color.
6. It resembles a roll of coins with a fuse coming out the side.
7. If it looks homemade, i.e., wrapped in electrical tape or fuse isn't taped down.
8. The person selling you the fireworks tells you they bought it in another state because of Washington fireworks laws.
Lastly, if you'd rather skip the process of detonating your own fireworks altogether, the State Patrol has put together a county-by-county list of public fireworks displays taking place across the state. You can download and view a PDF of that list at this link: www.wsp.wa.gov/fire/docs/fireworks/fireshow.pdf