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Albuquerque fire crews see decrease in illegal firework complaints this holiday
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Firefighters saw a large decrease in fireworks complaints — not to mention fires — across Albuquerque leading up to and on the Fourth of July.
Lt. Jason Fejer, an Albuquerque Fire Rescue spokesman, said the department responded to 865 complaints on Thursday and 426 on the three days leading to it, an overall decrease of more than 700 from 2023.
Fire Marshal Jason Garcia, in a statement, thanked those city residents who reported illegal fireworks through 311.
“We share your concern and frustration with illegal firework activity throughout the city,” Garcia said. “... The 4th of July is always one of the most challenging nights of the year for our department and we will continue to meet the challenge and to do everything we can to keep our community safe.”
Fejer said all reports made through 311, in 2023 and this year, are uploaded to a mapping system to show areas of the city with a high number of complaints. The Fire Marshal’s Office had units patrolling those areas for illegal fireworks while educating residents and inspecting fireworks stands.
Fejer said 168 of the illegal fireworks complaints made this year ended with a “cease and desist” order being issued, up from 123 such orders issued over the same period last year.
Additionally, Fejer said, AFR was dispatched to 49 outside fires from Thursday into Friday morning, whereas in 2023 there were 140 outside fire responses. One reported structure fire resulted in crews battling a blaze at a home northwest of Central and Wyoming just before midnight. No other details were given on that fire.
