Bismarck Tribune

By JENNY MICHAEBy JENNY MICHAEL

Boom. Sparkle. Pop. Pop. Boom. Sparkle. Wooooooo woooooooooo woooooooooooo.

The sounds around Mandan's Independence Day activities might be a little different this year, as police hand out fines rather than warnings for violations of the city's revised fireworks ordinance.

Mandan Police Deputy Chief Paul Leingang said officers are prepared to dole out tickets carrying $75 fines for shooting off fireworks outside the designated hours and days in Mandan.

The Mandan City Commission earlier this spring changed the city's previously broad fireworks ordinance to limit the days and hours in which people can legally shoot off fireworks after receiving complaints from the community. A committee worked on developing a happy medium between the people who felt fireworks were part of Mandan's heritage and the people who were annoyed by fireworks litter, loud noises while they tried to sleep and safety issues.

This year, people can shoot off fireworks in Mandan from noon to midnight on July 2 and 3, and from noon July 4 to 2 a.m. July 5.

The former ordinance allowed people to fire off pyrotechnics between 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. between July 1 and 5.

The law change came with a new penalty, making it a $75 fine to disobey the ordinance. Leingang said officers in previous years have seized fireworks from violators and issued warnings. Only when someone repeatedly offended or created a big problem did the police cite them for the infraction.

"I can assure them, it will be quite different (this year)," Leingang said. "Citations will be issued for violations."

The police department will not have any more officers on the streets than other years around the Fourth of July festivities. However, fireworks violations will be more of a priority this year, Leingang said.

More than 100 complaints were lodged with the Mandan Police Department last year about fireworks. Often people would get frustrated when officers could not respond immediately.

"And that's going to happen again this year, I can almost guarantee it,"Leingang said, explaining that officers have to respond to more serious complaints, such as assaults or emergencies, first.

Police still will seize violators' fireworks, which are later destroyed by the department's evidence custodian, Leingang said. But he expects the money to be the biggest deterrant of putting on a show outside the date and time constraints.

"It's an expensive ticket,"he said.

In rural Morton County, people can buy and ignite fireworks from today to July 5. The Morton County Sheriff's Department permits people to shoot off fireworks until 11 p.m. each of those days, except for July 4, when they can shoot them off until 2 the next morning.

A release from the Morton County Emergency Management office says violators will be warned once, then will be arrested for disorderly conduct in subsequent calls. Other cities in Morton County are bound by their own fireworks ordinances, the release said.

Fireworks are prohibited in Bismarck, and the ordinance outlaws anything sold at a fireworks stand that has to be ignited, including sparklers and snakes.

In Burleigh County, people can shoot off fireworks anytime from today to July 5. Sheriff's Lt. Nick Sevart said people are asked to be considerate of those around them and remember they might be sleeping. If there are complaints, people who are making too much noise could be cited, similar as to someone having a loud party. On some public areas, such as those belonging to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, shooting off fireworks may not be allowed, Sevart said.

He said people should ask permission before shooting off fireworks on someone else's property. If they shoot them off on public section lines, they need to clean up any messes afterward, he said.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@;bismarcktribune.com.)