SALT LAKE CITY — Communities across Utah are beginning to announce whether they will allow fireworks under an emergency order from Governor Spencer Cox.
Because of concerns about extreme wildfire danger around the Fourth of July, Gov. Cox enacted an emergency order that suspended a law that prohibited cities from enacting all-out bans on fireworks. The Utah State Forester then instituted a statewide ban but let cities decide if they would allow fireworks, with restrictions.
For Pioneer Day, Gov. Cox and the Utah State Forester allowed for cities to decide if they wanted a ban or to allow fireworks. He cited monsoon storms that had moved over parts of the state (some resulting in flooding) as justification for a reduced fire danger.
Some communities that banned fireworks for the Fourth of July decided to allow them for Pioneer Day. West Jordan is among those. Mayor Dirk Burton said while there is still a fire risk, he believes it can be managed. The community held an emergency meeting of its city council on Tuesday night where residents were divided.
"We want to manage the risk. There is a risk having fireworks. We know the risk is higher when people do fireworks. We want to manage that," Mayor Burton told FOX 13 News.
Across the border in Midvale, Mayor Dustin Gettel said they would keep a ban in place for the 24th of July holiday. While he is a self-proclaimed "fireworks guy," Mayor Gettel said with drought and extreme fire danger, banning them this year is "common sense" and residents have been supportive of it.
Firework sellers worry Pioneer Day won't make up for slow Fourth of July:
"I think it’s been near-universal support for banning fireworks this year. We’ve just determined it’s too hot, it’s too dry, it’s too windy," he told FOX 13 News. "We’ve had two major structure fires here in Midvale over the past 10 days."
Both mayors said they like having the option to choose what's best for their communities under the suspended law. FOX 13 News is told there has been some high-level discussions on Capitol Hill about reviewing the law that prohibited the local control. The Utah State Legislature would not address such a thing until the 2027 legislative session.
To find out if fireworks are allowed or banned in your community, check with your city. The following are communities FOX 13 News has found to be either allowing fireworks with restrictions or banning them.
Cities implementing full fireworks bans include:
- Alta
- Alpine
- American Fork
- Bountiful
- Brighton
- Centerville
- Copperton
- Cottonwood Heights
- Draper
- Duchesne City
- Eagle Mountain
- Emigration Canyon
- Farr West
- Grantsville
- Harrisville
- Heber City
- Highland
- Holladay
- Hooper
- Hyde Park
- Lehi
- Lindon
- Logan
- Magna
- Midvale
- Midway
- Millcreek
- Moab
- Murray
- Nephi
- North Ogden
- North Salt Lake
- North Logan
- Ogden
- Orem
- Pleasant View
- Pleasant Grove
- Provo
- Providence
- River Heights
- Roy
- Salt Lake City
- Sandy
- South Ogden
- South Salt Lake
- Springdale
- Tooele City
- West Bountiful
- West Haven
- White City
- Woods Cross
Cities allowing fireworks in specific areas include:
(Refer to your city's social media pages to learn about detailed restrictions)
- Cedar City
- Clearfield
- Clinton City
- Delta
- Farmington
- Ferron City
- Herriman
- Hurricane
- Ivins
- Kaysville
- Kearns
- Layton
- Mapleton
- Payson
- Price
- Richfield
- Riverdale
- Riverton
- Roosevelt
- Salem
- Santa Clara
- Spanish Fork
- Springville
- St. George
- Saratoga Springs
- Smithfield
- South Jordan
- South Weber
- Sunset
- Taylorsville
- Tremonton
- West Jordan
- West Point
- West Valley City
- Vernal
- Vineyard
