valentines day flowers ideas - Celebrate the New Year with a bang - but not a grass fire

`

LAS CRUCES - Starting off the year with the pops, sparkles and bangs of fireworks is one thing, but no one wants to begin 2012 with a grass fire, a first-degree burn, an escaped pet or an upset neighbor whose call results in a $500 fine for your illegal bottle rockets.valentines day flowers ideas
Fireworks sales began Monday and are allowed in the county through Sunday, New Year's Day, one of five holidays for which they're permitted to be sold and used in New Mexico.
But be careful - those aerial fireworks you brought back from El Paso County and the firecrackers on sale at Mesilla's lone stand might not be legal in your neighborhood, and could result in a fine for possession or discharge.
The city of Las Cruces and Do-a Ana County each have passed "safe and sane" ordinances - heavily curtailing the types of fireworks that can be sold, possessed and used within the municipality and the unincorporated areas of the county. Aerials and firecrackers are banned within both jurisdictions, leaving cone fountains, sparklers and smoke devices among what's authorized.
But despite a seemingly baffling array of products for sale and rules for their use, it's easy to celebrate: Mesilla will again open its public parks to everyone to set off all legal fireworks, as long as they clean up afterward, said Mesilla Marshal Jeff Gray.
"For the 4th of July, we get a ton of people from Texas and the south valley ... but on the first, it's primarily locals, and we don't have as many issues as we do on the 4th of
Advertisement

July," Gray said.
Revelers are reminded to read the instructions on their fireworks and to set them off legally - not on roadways and not on private property. And if you shoot off fireworks at Mesilla parks, don't bring any of the aerials, stick-type fireworks and bottle rockets that might have ended up in your arsenal, Gray said.
"They're illegal to possess in New Mexico, but (vendors) in Texas don't tell them, so that's where we get violations," Gray said.
In addition to having illegal fireworks confiscated, violators could be slapped with a $500 fine, he warned.
Fireworks use around Independence Day is also heavier in Las Cruces, according to the Las Cruces Police Department, which responded to 163 fireworks complaint calls and two fireworks-caused fires (one in a field, one in a Dumpster), confiscated 103 pounds of illegal fireworks and issued 47 warnings and one citation in the days around that holiday. But Public Information Officer Wallace Downs says officers are ready to respond again to this season's pyrotechnical complaints.
"We usually receive disturbance calls, (relating to) fireworks," Downs said. "We get a lot of loose dogs who run away, jump out of their yards trying to get away from fireworks, but mostly noise-related disturbances."
Federal officials will also be on the lookout for violations in New Mexico's wild lands: Fireworks possession and use is banned on U.S. Bureau of Land Management lands across New Mexico. Despite recent rain and snow in much the state, the agency said vegetation is still dry and prone to fire.
Ashley Meeks can be reached at (575) 541-5462; follow her on Twitter

The only fireworks allowed to be purchased and discharged in the city of Las Cruces are ground and hand-held sparkling and smoking devices including:
• Cone fountains
• Wheels
• Crackling devices
• Toy smoke devices
• Cylindrical fountains
• Illuminating torches
• Flitter sparklers
Fireworks prohibited for possession, sale or use in the city of Las Cruces are aerial and ground audible devices including:
• Aerial spinners
• Shells
• Helicopters
• Stick-type rockets
• Mines
• Chasers
• Missile-type rockets
• Firecrackers
• Roman candles
The Las Cruces Fire Department would also like to share the following safety tips for all users of fireworks:
• Fireworks may not be sold to anyone under 16 years old.
• Fireworks may not be sold to anyone who is intoxicated.
• Keep in mind the hour of usage and be considerate of your neighbors.
• Be aware that dry weather conditions have left grasses and weeds susceptible to fire.
• Keep a water supply - a garden hose and a bucket - handy in case of fire.
• Children should never use fireworks without adult supervision.
• Never let children light fireworks.
• Light only one item at a time and move away from it.
• Use fireworks outdoors only and keep them away from combustibles and busy areas.
• Purchase fireworks only from a licensed vendor.
• Follow all label directions carefully and use common sense.
• When you are finished celebrating, clean up debris from fireworks and help keep Las Cruces beautiful. valentines day flowers ideas