While fireworks will be legal in most of Pierce County for parts of two weeks leading up to and after Independence Day, one town will have a much tighter rein on pyrotechnics. Eatonville is in its second year of limiting personal fireworks inside town limits to two days. A fireworks ordinance that was passed by the Town Council in 2011 and took effect last year states that fireworks may only be used on July 3 and 4 from noon to 11 p.m., and never on a public street or sidewalk. Violations may result in a $100 fine for a first offense, with higher fines for repeat infractions. And parents will have to pay even if their non-adult kids, not them, are the offenders, according to the Police Department. Elsewhere, Pierce County has different, looser rules for when fireworks can be used in unincorporated areas such as Graham, Spanaway and Ashford. Fireworks can be set off from noon to 11 p.m. June 28 and 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. June 29 through July 5. Identical or siimilar rules are in effect in most towns and cities countywide. But fireworks are banned in Tacoma and Fircrest. Regulations for personal fireworks use don't apply to professional, licensed fireworks shows. Among Washington's most populated counties, Pierce has the fewest places where fireworks are banned. King County has 23 cities where bans exist, followed by Snohomish County with six, and Clark, Yakima and Spokane County with five each.
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