Fremont County bans personal fireworks, grants sheriff authority to enforce fire restrictions

FREMONT COUNTY — The Fremont County Commissioners voted at a special meeting to adopt Resolution No. 14, banning the personal use of fireworks and delegating authority to the Fremont County sheriff to impose or suspend the county—ire ban and determine fire-stage restrictions.

Sheriff Alan Cooper told the board he wants personal fireworks included under the county—lass 2 fire ban and the ability to prohibit them during heightened fire danger. "With our current fire conditions and extreme fire danger, I think this is a safety issue for the county," he said, arguing the change would let law enforcement act quickly to prevent human-caused blazes.

County staff presented recent incident information to justify the measure. Assistant County Administrator Sean Sutton displayed photos and summarized several local and nearby fires, saying the "24 fire" burned about 7,385 acres and the County Road 11 fire burned roughly 107 acres and was about 30% contained. He said a larger, nearby incident described as the Asper Aspen Acre fires was reported at more than 28,000 acres with about 150 structures threatened and 0% containment at the time of the presentation.

County Attorney Eric Bellis said the resolution delegates to the sheriff the authority the board previously held to suspend the standing county fire ban. "This just aligns the entire operational procedure with respect to fire control and fire danger with the reality that the sheriff is our fire warden," Bellis said, adding the resolution also includes specific findings of fact supporting a fireworks ban.

Board members and staff outlined enforcement and penalties. The county confirmed citations for violating the ban start at $250, with higher fines possible; officials also warned that if a violation causes a fire, the offense can escalate from a misdemeanor to a felony and the violator may be held financially responsible for firefighting costs and damages.

A commissioner moved and another seconded adoption of Resolution No. 14, described in the motion as "a resolution banning the use of fireworks and further delegating authority to the sheriff to suspend the fire ban, impose the fire ban, and to ban fireworks." The board approved the resolution by roll call (Commissioner Bell and Commissioner Grantham recorded affirmative votes; motion carries).

Officials urged residents to celebrate the Fourth of July safely, mentioning county flag and light displays at the Fremont County Administration building and encouraging alternatives to personal fireworks. The sheriff now has the delegated authority to impose or lift restrictions as fire danger evolves; citations and penalties are enforceable immediately under the adopted resolution.