Fireworks not finished yet

The Rotorua fire service is expecting more fireworks this week after Guy Fawkes was rained out.

The Rotorua fire brigade is bracing for fireworks-related calls this week after a damp Guy Fawkes night.

Senior Station Officer Cameron McEwan said there was only one call-out on Tuesday night and that was for a bonfire burning too close to a building on Vaughan Rd.

"It's been quiet so far but it was also very wet," he said.

"It's going to be the next few nights, or Saturday that they might go stupid. They have got $200 or $300 boxes of fireworks they are itching to let off."

He said he would prefer it if people went to organised displays or, if they bought fireworks, that they used them on November 5.

"Whether there are rules or not, people need to heed to the guidelines of being clear of property and making sure not only their pets but other people's animals are not affected.

"People hoard them, they let them off over Christmas and New Year. It used to be all over and done with by November 5, but now people are keeping them and lighting them when it's a lot drier.

"We've had house fires and roof fires where people have set off the big ones and they have gone into the guttering and set fire to building paper."

Mr McEwan said if people intended to light fireworks they should follow the instructions. They should be lit no closer than 3 metres from a building or fence, such as in the middle of the lawn, and people should not go back to them if they had not gone off.

He also said people should use them safely in that they should not aim them at other people, houses or cars, or light them towards trees. "Some people don't think - they're playing with a volatile explosive.

"We have good fireworks displays these days. I think people should spend their money on going to a wonderful evening and make a night of it. You get a far better display than doing it yourself."