by Elizabeth Turnbull

In years past, Skyway has been a place for residents of Renton and Seattle to skirt firework bans and to set off fireworks for July 4. To combat this, King County officials are implementing a three-year plan to crack down on fireworks in the area and in other unincorporated places.

“What was happening in Skyway is that because all of the neighboring cities have already banned fireworks, it was creating a funneling effect where everybody was coming to this city or this neighborhood to blow off their fireworks,” King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay told the Emerald. “They believed all fireworks are legal even though that’s not the case.”

Explosives such as firecrackers, bottle rockets, sky rockets, and missiles are banned for consumer use in Washington State as a whole, except in tribal lands. Display fireworks are also illegal for consumer use countywide.