ELK GROVE, Calif — More than $200,000 in fines were issued this year following an illegal fireworks crackdown in Elk Grove.
The city of Elk Grove caught illegal firework users in the act this Fourth of July. A drone helped the Elk Grove Police Department, city code enforcement and firefighters nab users and this year, hosts of illegal fireworks shows.
$240,000 in citations were issued this year alone, including a $100,000 fine at one single location.
"The word is traveling fast that the city of elk grove won't tolerate this violation," said Jose Mendez, code enforcement manager.
Mendez told ABC10 the deployment of a drone played a crucial role, accounting for $180,000 of those citations.
Earlier this year, the City Council set fines of $1,000 for each firework launched or possessed. They also allowed for hosts to be held liable for fines if fireworks were launched from their property or if they failed to prevent them.
Mendez said this year, 19 property owners were cited.
"It's a safety concern and that's why we adopted these amendments," he said. "It's with the intent of changing behavior and stopping the activity hopefully altogether."
As for next year, Mendez said they will be deploying two drones to cover the entire city. They will also continue their outreach and education efforts in the community.
"The citations is working. They have agreed not to violate the code again and utilize illegal fireworks. From what I understand, the community is also talking a lot about this which is good. I think it's great that the news is out," Mendez said.
He added that some violators were contesting the citations and others were asking to work with the city to avoid the hefty fines. They are still figuring that out.
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