STAFF REPORTS
The use of all fireworks and pyrotechnics is illegal in Hays County under a local emergency declaration signed by County Judge Bert Cobb on Monday and affirmed by the commissioners court on Tuesday.
Under state law, the county has limited authority over fireworks unless the county’s emergency management plan is activated. The ban will be in effect until the Governor’s Statewide Disaster Declaration is rescinded or the county determines the need for the ban no longer exists. The county has been under a burn ban since mid-December 2010, but by state law fireworks are not part of the standard burn ban.
“We want to be sensitive to the fireworks industry and their business but it’s just too dangerous right now to shoot off fireworks anywhere in Hays County,” County Judge Bert Cobb said.
Violations of the ban can result in a Class C misdemeanor citation with up to a $500 fine. Hays County Fire Marshal Mark Chambers noted that damage to property from a fire started by fireworks can also result in civil lawsuits being brought by the affected parties.
Chambers said that as of Tuesday morning, the Keetch-Byram Drought Index was at 671 out of 800 and was expected to go higher due to continued low humidity, high winds and long-term drought conditions.
