BUENA VISTA, Va. – The 4th of July is right around the corner and while people are excited to light up the night with fireworks of their own, multiple agencies are advising against it.
Cory Swift-Turner works with the Virginia Department of Forestry.
“The Virginia Department of Forestry is encouraging folks to instead of lighting off fireworks at home, to instead consider attending a public, professionally organized fireworks show. Just leave the fireworks to the professionals,” Swift-Turner said.
One of these shows is already being postponed. Rockbridge County’s celebration in Buena Vista is being postponed to Sunday because of dry conditions.
As of Tuesday, 10 News was only made aware of the show in Rockbridge County being postponed.
However, other communities are getting messages encouraging them to go out to shows rather than stay at home.
10 News got a statement from Bedford County about the dangers of at-home fireworks.
“With the extremely dry conditions we are experiencing across the region, it won’t take long for a spark to turn into a fast-moving brush fire. Keeping this in mind, Bedford County officials are strongly encouraging local residents to avoid lighting fireworks at home to celebrate the Fourth of July.”
The professional shows are a lot more of a controlled environment with people constantly paying attention to what’s happening.
“They take a lot of things into consideration. Where they’re lighting off the fireworks, the conditions for those fireworks and just making sure that safety is first,” Swift-Turner said.