Some seven dozen public complaints related to the illegal use of fireworks on the Victoria Day long weekend in Mississauga were received by the city, officials say.
Despite the 84 complaints from residents, only two fines were issued by bylaw enforcement officers throughout the holiday weekend, a City of Mississauga spokesperson told INsauga.com — one for fireworks use, the other for unlicensed sales.
Still, the number of complaints this past weekend, when several new fireworks rules were in place, was more than the city received over the same holiday weekend the past two years combined.
By comparison, 52 complaints were lodged during the Victoria Day weekend in 2025 while 30 were received in 2024. However, more charges were laid and fines issued by the city each of the past two Victoria Day weekends in Mississauga, the numbers also show.
In one particularly raucous gathering this past weekend, hundreds of young people reportedly took over Port Credit Memorial Park in the city’s south end on Victoria Day to fight it out with fireworks.
Hundreds of teens reportedly in fireworks fights
According to multiple accounts, several hundred teens gathered after dark at the popular park to let off fireworks before the situation escalated when they turned the explosives on each other.
Typically, Roman candles — now outlawed in Mississauga as of this year — are the weapons of choice used during fireworks fights.
“I drove by the area as it was happening. It looked like a battle zone,” said one commenter on a Mississauga online forum. “There were kids running everywhere and some cops were chasing them. It was chaos. Never seen anything like this before in Port Credit.”
The city spokesperson said a complaint related to the Port Credit Memorial Park incident was received and that Peel Regional Police were already on the scene at the time.
Police didn’t provide details on any arrests or charges related to the fireworks gathering, but they did confirm to INsauga.com earlier this week that they were “aware of several incidents of fireworks in Port Credit” and there was a “high volume of calls spread out in the area.”
While there were no sanctioned fireworks displays in the area, witnesses said the mayhem wasn’t limited to the park, with several other similar incidents occurring along Mississauga’s lakefront.
There were also uncomfirmed reports of Roman candles being used in Streetsville.
READ MORE: Fire and mayhem in Brampton park ends with over a dozen arrests
Meanwhile, the city official also said Ridgeway Plaza in Mississauga’s west end, which has become notorious the past several years for numerous loud, illegal and at times dangerous gatherings, “was continuously monitored throughout the night” on Victoria Day.
However, only two “service requests” were submitted in the area of the plaza, “with no fireworks-related activity observed upon the officers’ arrival.”
Under new rules that took effect the beginning of this year, residents are still allowed to set off backyard fireworks in Mississauga to celebrate Victoria Day and four other holidays throughout the year without first obtaining city permits — but they may now only do so between 6 and 10 p.m. on the day of the holiday.
Similar allowances are in place on New Year’s Eve, Lunar New Year, Canada Day and Diwali.
New fireworks rules took effect earlier this year
Also under Mississauga’s amended fireworks bylaw, approved by city council in late 2025, the public sale of fireworks in Mississauga can take place only within a period of 10 days before the holiday, and no longer on the day of the celebration.
In addition, residents cannot use Roman candle fireworks and the city is no longer allowing permits for consumer fireworks. Only permits for display or professional fireworks will be approved.
Fines for misusing fireworks or breaking any other rules related to the celebratory devices have also been increased in Mississauga.
Several months after strengthening its fireworks bylaw last fall, Mississauga hiked the penalties — again — earlier this year for those who break the rules.
Increased fines now in place, too
Bylaw enforcement officers can now dish out costlier fines of $500 to $1,000, depending on the infraction, to offenders on the spot. Previously, there were either no set fine amounts for many offences and for others a penalty of $125 was imposed.
The city’s “new, increased and escalating” fines took effect on May 1.
Senior city staff said earlier this year the previous penalties “and enforcement mechanisms for fireworks-related contraventions” were not effective deterrents, “limiting the city’s ability to achieve sustained compliance.”
The changes adopted allow for “more immediate, predictable and proportionate consequences” that more effectively encourage compliance, city staff added.
Fireworks ban was considered, but not implemented
Last fall, in an ongoing attempt to beef up rules related to use and sale of fireworks, Mississauga city council strengthened regulations and public education efforts related to the celebratory devices. The reworked bylaw took effect in January of this year.
After lengthy debate and public input, council last October opted not to impose a full fireworks ban in Canada’s seventh-largest city, which was being considered, and chose instead to bolster the bylaw.
In late 2023, the city approved changes to its fireworks bylaw that took direct aim at those who most egregiously break the rules. Maximum fines for the worst offenders were increased from $5,000 to $100,000 — or more.
— With files from Steve Pecar
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