MIDDLETOWN – The Middletown Common Council is calling on the Orange County Legislature to rescind its approval of certain fireworks allowed by the state to be sold throughout the county in the week leading up to the Fourth of July and at the end of December.
Middletown Mayor Joseph DeStefano said each municipality should have the authority to approve fireworks if they so chose.
Densely populated communities like Middletown would have the option to outlaw their use if the county rescinds its approval.
On July 4th this year, DeStefano said the police had over 100 complaints of fireworks, some legal and some illegal causing a nuisance.
“The bottom line is I am not proposing that we be excluded from this program because I was annoyed or my pets were annoyed. It’s more of a public safety concern,” the mayor said.
DeStefano noted dense smoke, noise and the potential for fire hazard. He said the scene in some neighborhoods looked like “a war zone.”
The common council voted unanimously on Tuesday calling on the county to rescind its county-wide approval.
Alderman Joseph Masi, who sponsored the resolution, said when city officials drove around on July 4th at night, they had to stop on certain streets that were blocked by large fireworks being set off.
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