![\"Reading](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Epolito.jpeg\")
<\/p>\nThey may be legal to buy, but that doesn\u2019t\u2019 mean consumer fireworks, which are sold at ubiquitous pop-up retail stands approaching the summer holidays, are safe and legal to use in an urban setting like Reading.<\/p>\n
Reading fire and police officials urged residents to leave fireworks to professionals, saying the city\u2019s dense neighborhoods make it nearly impossible to use consumer\u2011grade fireworks safely \u2014 and that the devices on the market today are far more powerful than many people realize.<\/p>\n
Mayor Eddie Moran joined Fire Marshal Jeremy Searfoss and Reading police Lt. Nick Epolito, the bomb squad commander, at the Berks County Fire Training Center on Wednesday to share their concerns and suggest safeguards ahead of the July Fourth weekend.<\/p>\n
Reading\u2019s skyline has lit up with aerial fireworks for the past few Independence Days since the Pennsylvania Legislature loosened the fireworks law, allowing consumers to buy and use consumer-grade fireworks such as Roman candles and mortars.<\/p>\n
Searfoss said he continues to be struck by what\u2019s available on the consumer market these days, noting that many of the items sold legally in Pennsylvania are essentially small\u2011scale explosive devices.<\/p>\n
He emphasized that Reading\u2019s dense neighborhoods make legal use by residents nearly impossible because state law requires a minimum 150\u2011foot setback from any structure or occupied vehicle.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is explosive material and people need to be extremely careful and make sure that there\u2019s due diligence,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
According to state police data, thousands of Americans are injured each year in fireworks\u2011related incidents, with burns to the face among the most common injuries. Fireworks also start more than 19,500 fires annually, causing an estimated $105 million in direct property damage.<\/p>\n
Reading has seen several fireworks\u2011sparked fires in recent years, including a 2019 fire on the roof of Amanda Stout Elementary School that caused more than $250,000 in damage. In another incident, a man was left blind after being struck by debris from a firework.<\/p>\n
During Wednesday\u2019s demonstration, Searfoss held up a 27\u2011inch \u201cFlash and Crash\u201d jumbo candle \u2014 a device containing 78 rapid\u2011fire shots with loud reports and bright strobes.<\/p>\n
He also displayed \u201cThe Boss,\u201d a 20\u2011shot aerial cake that fires pillars of glowing gold sparks, brocade effects and ruby\u2011red stars.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are fused in between, so once it starts going, you can\u2019t stop it and you\u2019re not going to be able to do anything with it but stay away from it and let it run its course,\u201d Searfoss said. \u201cSo, we encourage people to be extremely judicious about where they\u2019re using this type of materials when they\u2019re around other people.\u201d<\/p>\n
He urged residents to read warning labels carefully, maintain separation distances, and understand that even small devices can behave unpredictably.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
STEVEN HENSHAW – READING EAGLE<\/p>\n
Reading police Lt. Nick Epolito, bomb squad commander, says mortars \u2014 on the right side of the tailgate \u2014 may be legal fireworks, but need to be handled with extreme care if they misfire. On the left side the tailgate are three illegal fireworks, which are essentially explosive devices in cardboard coverings. (STEVEN HENSHAW – READING EAGLE)<\/p>\n
Epolito walked reporters through the internal components of aerial mortars \u2014 the devices responsible for some of the most severe injuries the bomb squad sees.<\/p>\n
Inside each tube is a lift charge and a bursting charge, he said. When one fails and the other doesn\u2019t, people often approach the device thinking it\u2019s spent.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had people lose their eyesight, lose their hands,\u201d Epolito said. \u201cIf something misfires, don\u2019t walk up to it.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said damaged or questionable fireworks should be soaked in water and left alone. Anyone who believes they have an unsafe device should call the 911 non\u2011emergency line, 610-655-4911, which will connect them with the fire department or bomb squad.<\/p>\n
Officials stressed that fireworks should only be handled by a responsible adult who is sober and alert, and that rural users must ensure there is no brush or dry vegetation nearby.<\/p>\n
But in Reading, Searfoss said, the safest option is to plan to attend one of several public fireworks displays, such as those planned at each night\u2019s Reading Fightin Phils games over the weekend or Saturday\u2019s Star-Spangled Spectacular at the Berks County Fairgrounds, a few miles over the city line in Bern Township.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can go there and enjoy yourself,\u201d the fire marshal said. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to worry about it. Leave it to the professionals.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"They may be legal to buy, but that doesn\u2019t\u2019 mean consumer fireworks, which are sold at ubiquitous pop-up…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":234759,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,202,182,139,28,736,128,130,129,706],"class_list":["post-234758","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county","tag-crime-and-public-safety","tag-local-news","tag-news","tag-pennsylvania","tag-reading","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-top-stories-reg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=234758"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/234758\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/234759"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=234758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=234758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=234758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}