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Fireworks are going off across Western New York illegally

Posted at 6:09 PM, Jun 18, 2020
and last updated 2020-06-18 18:09:58-04

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — From Pittsford to Jamestown, fireworks are going off across Western New York throughout the night and sometimes into the morning.

“Every night from around 9 to midnight they set off fireworks,” said Richard Issacs, who lives in the Black Rock section of Buffalo.

“I was on my back porch and literally the house behind me and I heard it and I screamed is that really necessary?” said Molly McCarthy, who lives in Niagara Falls.

In Jamestown, police have responded to 65 fireworks related calls so far this month. That’s compared to 31 fireworks related calls for the entire month of June last year. ​
In Dunkirk, police say fireworks related calls have increased tenfold in just the past week.​

Isaacs said the loud booms wake up his three kids nearly every night.​

“The three-month-old goes to sleep around 7-7:30 p.m. after we give him his bath. The other two go to bed around 8-8:30pm. Then around 9-10 o'clock they start waking up again because of the big booms,” Isaacs said.

​But these fireworks aren't just keeping humans awake. They're affecting our four-legged friends as well.

“The two-year-old [dog] starts howling and he's ridiculous. The 12-year-old [dog] starts shaking. I just don't know what to do because I want to comfort them, but I can't do anything because I'm not the one setting off the fireworks,” McCarthy said.

It's changed the entire family's routine.​

​“It's to the point that I can't even walk my dog outside for his nighttime walk. It's hard. I don't want to make it so he can't go to the bathroom outside,” McCarthy said.

Dunkirk Police are reminding everyone you can be charged for use and possession of fireworks and be fined for violating the noise ordinance.