As the ground dries up in western North Dakota, fireworks sales have seemingly done the same. The Stark County burn ban has had a significant effect on local vendors who use the money they make from fireworks sales to help their families throughout the year.
Norris Marx, owner of Norris Hotshot Fireworks, said the drought has really hurt their sales this summer. Fireworks sales are legal from June 27 to July 5 in the summer and a short amount of time during the winter for New Year’s Eve. Marx has been selling fireworks for eight years and said this has been the worst year he has seen so far.
“It’s been catastrophic for sales,” Marx said.
While they have had people still buying, Marx said they’re asking everybody to not light them off and wait until New Years. Then if there is good snow cover they could be set off in the county at that time.
“We don’t want them lighting them off right now either,” he said. “We’re not going to light any, that’s for sure. … We need everybody to pray for rain.”
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He said he believes that the potential consequences people could face for lighting them has served as a deterrent for people even purchasing fireworks. It is a Class B misdemeanor to set off fireworks within city limits year-round and is currently also illegal in the county during the burn ban. The citation could result in a $1,500 fine and/or 30 days in jail should a person be found guilty.
“I do think the fine is a little excessive,” he said. “It’s working and I can understand why they’re doing that, but then again we understand that people need to be warned too and if that’s the way to do it that’s the way to do it. … The punishment doesn’t maybe really fit the crime.”
Marx said people in the area have been very cautious about the decisions they are making when it comes to fireworks and the burn ban. He does not believe people are taking the situation lightly and want to do all they can to protect their neighbor’s homes and property.
“One thing that’s nice about people in this area is that they’ve got common sense,” he said. “They know that they shouldn’t be doing it. We can obviously tell by our sales.”
Alex Braun, owner of Fireworks by Braun, said his sales numbers are about one-fourth of what they were last year. He had hoped this winter’s snowfall would help with the ground moisture levels this year, but that has not been the case.
“I definitely thought the summer was looking positive,” Braun said. “I definitely did not think we’d been in a drought or a fire ban.”
While Braun sells fireworks for a hobby, he said he knows a lot of people who depend on the sales for part of their livelihood. He added that he has sold a lot more party poppers and snaps this season, while items like sparklers have been much slower than they normally are.
“I know a lot of people that that’s all they do, they sell fireworks and that’s their income for the year,” he said. “I can’t imagine what it’s like this year. For me it’s not a huge part of my income, I do it basically for fun. The people that sell it to make their living, I honestly feel bad for them this year.”
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Marx said it was important for them to be open this year to let people know they are still in business so they don’t get forgotten about next year.
“If we don’t open for a year then everybody thinks we’re out of business then it’s really difficult to get people to come back,” he said. “... We were considering not opening this year, but we don’t know how Mother Nature is going to work. We could have gotten a bunch of rain, we’d already made our order and we didn’t know how dry it was going to be when we did that. It’s always a risk.”
However, Marx knows the drought affects much more than just fireworks sales. Farmers and ranchers in western North Dakota have been hit hard with the lack of moisture and high temperatures this year, making them have to be careful where they spend their money, Marx said.
“With a drought year it trickles down to everyone, shopping, stores, gas stations,” he said. “If the farmers and ranchers don’t have any money nobody is going to. They’re the ones really driving our economy.”
Marx said he is also worried about how this year’s drought and multiple burn bans across the state will affect upcoming legislation and laws within cities. He believes his business has already been hurt by the city of Dickinson not allowing fireworks sales within the city, so he does not want people to panic next year if conditions get dry quickly and cause a burn ban to go into effect.
“When it gets dry a little bit, I’m afraid they’re going to put the ban on sooner,” he said. “... If the fire danger there should not be a ban in that area and it should be lifted day-by-day. It shouldn’t be a permanent thing.”
Fireworks can still be purchased until midnight on July 5. Marx said Norris Hotshot Fireworks will be open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Ultimately, Marx hopes next year goes better.
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“Just pray for rain,” he said.
