By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

Those caught possessing fireworks within Pelham city limits this Independence Day weekend could face a hefty fine, Pelham officials said.

A Pelham city ordinance passed several years ago outlaws the possession of fireworks and celebratory gunfire, but is often ignored by residents during major holiday periods such as the Fourth of July, said Pelham Fire Department Cmdr. Blair Sides.

“People will start shooting bottle rockets, and they will land in the woods and start a fire, especially when it’s this dry outside,” Sides said on July 3, noting he had just finished extinguishing several brush fires caused by fireworks along Shelby County 261.

Sides also said the department typically responds to several fireworks-related medical calls during the Independence Day period. He said many medical calls during this time of year involve those suffering fireworks-related burns.

“Some of them are severe, like when a firework explodes in someone’s hand,” Sides said.

According to Pelham law, those charged by police with possessing fireworks face a mandatory court date, $217 in court costs and a fine set by the Municipal Court judge.