According to the Kent Fire Department Regional Fire Authority call report recently released, there were 136 fire related calls for the entire week of June 28-July 4.
Between 8 a.m. on July 4 and 8 a.m. on July 5 alone, there were 81 fire related calls – brush, structure, vegetation, grass, etc. Thank you to those who acted responsibly on July 4. It could have been worse.
Laws are normally fashioned because some people – normally a small portion – don’t know how to use common sense, and their inconsiderate or unsafe actions directly affect the general population.
Many in the City of Kent are refusing to act responsibly with fireworks. It’s their right, they say. It’s their right to inflict damage, to terrorize people and animals and make a huge mess they do not clean up.
Well, what about my rights?
My neighborhood sounded like a war zone late July 4. It was even worse than last year. The illegal mortars were obvious. What are you teaching your children? The next time they disobey you, or a teacher, you’d better not punish them. Remember, you taught them not to obey rules.
Besides, did these folks not hear about the statewide fire danger? It’s rather disturbing that so many did not read a newspaper, watch the news, listen to a radio or use a computer and therefore weren’t aware of the situation.
What disturbs me most is that our City Council could have done something.
According to the Kent City Code 13.05.060 B. Ban authority due to fire danger: The fire marshal, subject to the City Council’s prior approval, may ban the sale, use, and or/discharge of fireworks within the city limits of Kent in the event that the risk of fire in King County or the city of Kent has been determined by the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (“DNR”), or a qualified DNR official, to be “very high/extreme” or otherwise at the highest fire danger level.
How did the fire marshal and the City Council not get on the same page? They are putting political expediency over public safety and showing blatant cowardice. My understanding of the RCW is that if they voted on an ordinance to ban fireworks now, it would go into effect July 1, 2016, in time for the next Fourth of July.
There is absolutely nothing any council member or the mayor could say that would convince me they shouldn’t ban fireworks immediately. We have three votes in this house, and I can tell you we will not vote for any one of them if this is not handled. Let your votes count.
I encourage all of you to write to the council members and Mayor Cooke and keep writing.
Don’t let any of them tell you, “Hey, it’s not my job, man.” This belongs on the doorstep of every person here.
– Carrie Stark
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