Fireworks surveillance snares sneaky Mainers

By JESSICA DURKIN, Portland Press Herald Writer

Copyright © 2004 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

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Staff photo by Gregory Rec Two boxes of bottle rockets sit in a car owned by a Maine man, who did not want to be identified. He bought them at a New Hampshire store. Most fireworks are illegal in Maine.

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SEABROOK, N.H. — Independence Day is fast approaching, and fireworks purveyors in this seacoast town are doing a brisk business. Cars in the parking lot Tuesday morning at Phantom Fireworks on Route 1 had license plates from Vermont, New York, Massachusetts and Maine. "Business is up 10 percent," said Mary McCluskey, Phantom Fireworks assistant manager, comparing 2004 sales to last year. "We are a back-yard fireworks business. Most people that purchase fireworks come to vacation in New Hampshire and they use fireworks in New Hampshire."

But at least some of the fireworks sold there are making their way to Maine - where they are illegal and are being seized as part of a crackdown by state police and the state Fire Marshal's Office.

In the past two weeks, authorities have charged six people in York District Court with illegal fireworks possession. Fireworks valued at nearly $1,800 have been seized so far, authorities said.

Fire marshals are using unmarked vehicles to conduct surveillance of fireworks dealers in New Hampshire, with the permission of police in that state. In Maine, state police in marked cruisers are stopping and searching cars suspected of carrying fireworks. Violators could face fines of up to $5,000, plus seizure of the fireworks.

"Any ports of entry from New Hampshire to Maine we'll be watching, but we obviously will not tell when or where," said state Fire Marshal John Dean.

New Hampshire law prohibits the sale of fireworks to anyone under age 21. At Phantom Fireworks, customers must show identification at the door. But McCluskey said surveillance checks by Maine authorities have not discouraged customers. On Tuesday, one Maine family loaded bags of pyrotechnics into their minivan.

Across the street at Fantasy Fireworks, two customers who declined to be interviewed were spotted loading cases of "5 Star Generals" into the trunk of a Ford Taurus with Maine license plates. Another Maine customer folded down the back seat of his Ford Bronco to accommodate bags of merchandise.

Maine and five other states have banned personal use of most fireworks. The only legal fireworks commonly sold without a license in Maine are sparklers, morning glories and caps.

It's a Class D crime in Maine to possess fireworks valued at more than $100. The penalty is a fine of up to $5,000. Possessing fireworks worth less than $100 is a civil offense, normally punished by fines of about $50.

Dr. Andrew Perron, emergency medicine residency coordinator at Maine Medical Center in Portland, has come to expect holiday hospital admissions from fireworks mishaps.

"You don't go a Fourth of July without hand injuries," Perron said of the most common type of pyrotechnic injury. "It's just one of those things you expect, that something's going to go off in a hand and someone's going to lose some fingers."

According to the federal Centers for Disease Control, 50 percent of fireworks injuries happen to children aged 14 or younger. Male children make up three-fourths of that group. Sixty percent of overall injuries are burn-related, and misuse of legal fireworks such as sparklers can have serious results.

"People think it's safe to give a kid a sparkler without adequate supervision, and the wire burns at over 1,000 degrees," Perron said. "That's a ready mode for burning the skin - if you just touch them you get a burn."

Dean said Maine authorities realize they're only capturing a tiny percentage of the fireworks coming into the state.

"It's not a real easy thing to do," he said, "and we're not really looking for a volume of people to stop, but to send a message that you are taking a risk."

Staff Writer Jessica Durkin can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:

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