NYE illegal fireworks warning in County Durham and Darlington
County Durham and Darlington Fire Service are warning people about the dangers of illegal fireworks as New Year’s Eve gets closer.
The fake products may be a cheaper price but the service say they’re manufactured from poor quality materials that can cause severe injuries to the users, and even have links to organised crime.
Sales can often be found online or through a friend or a friend, but firefighters warn that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Instead, those planning to let off fireworks this New Year’s Eve are being urged to only buy from reputable retailers.
Andrew Allison is Community Safety Manager at County Durham and Darlington Fire Service. He said:
“If you’re going to search social media sites and speak to the guy around the corner who knows another guy who has a van, chances are it is too good to be true and it’s an illegal firework.
“The illegal fireworks now will look like a legitimate firework so it will be marked up with a British standard number, it may even look the same as the firework you can buy in one of your reputable retailers.
“It’s a very big business for the people who do this. You can imagine the money behind this, it’s not just one guy in a shed producing a few fireworks as a bit of a hobby and to make a few quid over Christmas, this is organised crime.
Find out more about letting off fireworks at: You can find out more at Gov.uk: fireworks and the law and you can report anything suspicious to: