A group of volunteers are cracking down on illegal fireworks displays this Fourth of July weekend in Morgan Hill.
After a quick briefing at Morgan Hills Police Department Saturday night, the Community Emergency Response Team or CERT volunteers were off to the city’s hot spots for fireworks and fire danger.
“On the Fourth Of July, this will be a very busy area, there will be people up here to watch the fireworks,” said CERT volunteer Bryce Hansen.
In Morgan Hill's Holiday Lake Estates neighborhood, there’s hundreds of homes surrounded by dry hills or fuel which makes this weekend terrifying for those living in the area.
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“It’s extremely scary especially because we were evacuated twice last year,” said Morgan Hill resident Sarah Wood.
The Homeowners Association President Chris Wood and his wife Sarah have always feared a tragedy similar to what happened in Paradise. But this weekend, they are thankful all hands are on deck.
“So, this is a very real threat, and the CERT people are doing a tremendous job to reduce the threat on probably one of the most dangerous days of the year, 4th of July,” Chris Wood said.
The teams are trying to relieve police as they take care of emergencies in the city.
“It's more of a deterrence because people know that were looking at them, that will hopefully will discourage them from using fireworks," Hansen said.
This is the second year this group has helped patrol the east foothills during the Fourth of July weekend. Friday was their first night and they’ll continue through Monday.
If a resident gets caught with illegal fireworks, they should expect a fine of up to $5,000.
