Fireworks banned in Sublette County
Pinedale & Big Piney/Marbleton will have great 4th of July town displays
by Pinedale Online!
July 3, 2017
Sublette County has had an official resolution to ban fireworks since 1988, but every year people wonder if they can shoot off their own fireworks for the 4th of July.
Fireworks are prohibited year-round everywhere on the Bridger-Teton National Forest and in the nearby National Parks.
As far as the county goes, it is illegal to manufacture, possess or sell fireworks in Sublette County unless you have a special permit which is granted under certain conditions. The ban includes firecrackers, sky rockets, Roman candles, sparklers, Daygo bombs, toy cannons, blank cartridges and any device which is prepared for the purpose of producing a visible or an audible effect by combustion, explosion, deflagration or detonation. We’re paraphrasing the list from the official resolution, so if you want the actual technical wording and long list of what is banned, you can contact the Sublette County Clerk or the Sublette County Sheriff’s Office and ask for Resolution 88-183T.
If someone wanted to have their own private fireworks display on their property at any time of the year, the resolution has provisions for special permits.
Applications must be in writing at least ten days in advance of the date of the display and there are safety provisions related to competent operators, safe location for discharge, etc that must be approved by the Sublette County Fire Warden. The permittee also must furnish a bond or certificate of insurance for payment of possible damages that might occur if the display, or anyone related to it, causes a fire or other damage.
Anyone in possession of illegal fireworks, or offering them for sale, can have them seized and taken away at the expense of the owner. Possession of fireworks is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not more than $750.
The exception to the fireworks ban is that the towns of Pinedale and Big Piney/Marbleton will have fireworks displays at dusk on the 4th of July. Local volunteer fire department personnel will be out in force to staff the display shoot and trucks stationed around the area in case any ignitions might occur from the fireworks sparks.
Pinedale fireworks will be shot off from the ballfields on the hill by the medical clinic. They should be visible from pretty much everywhere around town. The Town of Pinedale funds the Pinedale display
The Big Piney/Marbleton fireworks are shot from the Marbleton hill, just south of Obo’s. Their display caps off their two-day Independence Day festivities. This year is the 83rd annual Chuckwagon Days celebration which includes a Lil’ Buckaroo Rodeo, early morning walk/run, pancake breakfast, parade, free community bbq, rodeo, and street dance. Funds for the Big Piney/Marbleton fireworks are contributed by both Town governments and through donations received at the local volunteer fire department annual Catfish Fry.
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Independence Day
In the United States, Independence Day, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday commemorating the adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Annual celebrations each year afterwards included official dinners, toasts, 13-gun salutes, speeches, prayers, music, parades, troop reviews, and fireworks. In 1870, the U.S. Congress made Independence Day an unpaid holiday for federal employees. In 1938, under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Congress changed Independence Day to a paid federal holiday.
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