Police warn Amherst fireworks ban remains in place for July 4

AMHERST — Fireworks displays will remain illegal in the city of Amherst, despite changes many other communities across the state are making in time for the Fourth of July. City Council has made no move to loosen its ordinances banning fireworks ahead of the holiday, despite a new state law that opens the skies. "We don't want to see anybody get hurt," Amherst police Chief Mark Cawthon said Thursday. "We don't want to see anybody cause a fire should they be careless with them." In years past, noise from fireworks has been a problem, he said. Officers will enforce the ban through Independence Day and the following weekend, he said. They have the power to give warnings to violators or charge them with a first-degree misdemeanor. That means setting off fireworks inside the city limits could cost you a $1,000 fine and up to six months in jail. "The Fourth of July is a hard one. You want people to have fun, but there are laws you have to follow," Mayor Mark Costilow said. Ohio House Bill 172 rolls back a statewide ban on launching consumer-grade firecrackers. Instead of a free-for-all, the new law lets towns decide whether to ban possession and displays or to allow them on select holidays. Those dates include New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, Chinese New Year, Cinco de Mayo, Memorial Day weekend, Juneteenth, July 3-5 and the weekends immediately before and after Independence Day, Labor Day weekend and the Hindu holiday of Diwali. Amherst has had a complete ban on fireworks possession, sales or discharge for many years. Cawthon said that on the advice of Assistant Law Director Patrick Ward, that ordinance will stand with no amendments. Communities across the county are taking different approaches to fireworks. Lorain and Wellington, for example, are allowing launches on the holidays allowed under the new state law, but with curbs on the times they can be done. Oberlin City Council, after much debate, passed a complete ban on launches and possession, taking the advice of fire Chief Robert Hanmer, who said they posed a danger to firefighters. Amherst may eventually change its policy, said Cawthon, who plans to see what kind of injuries and other emergencies result in less restrictive cities. "I think this is going to be kind of a unique Fourth of July, because we're going to see a different look," he said. Reporter Jason Hawk can be reached at (440) 329-7122 or news@lcnewspapers.com.