Lynn fire officials: Go Fourth … safely

LYNN – The days when bonfires flared up around the city are long gone, but Fire Chief James McDonald warned residents face risk of injury and fines from fireworks, outdoor campfires and improperly placed grills.Except for propane or charcoal-fueled cooking grills or fire pits, outdoor fires – including brush or grass burning – are not permitted in Lynn, McDonald said. That prohibition has not stopped residents from risking burns or property damage associated with outdoor fires this summer.?We get a call at least every weekend. Some neighbors don?t care, but we get a lot of complaints, and we?re compelled to investigate,” McDonald said.State law regulates outdoor fires and gives local authorities permission to permit outdoor fires.?We inform property owners we don?t allow outside burning and no recreational fires,” McDonald said.McDonald can remember when the July 4 weekend spawned bonfires in parks and empty lots across the city with more than 100 a weekend keeping firefighters busy.?We would go from one to the next all night long. I was on 57 runs one July 3,” he said.A 1980s fire-safety education program aimed at the schools gradually erased the bonfire craze, and McDonald said students who participated in the programs as children adopted safe fire habits as adults.But McDonald said outdoor fires “conservatively” injure a half dozen Lynn residents annually.Fireworks and grills are also cause injuries and property damage. A fire attributed by the state fire marshal?s office to fireworks caused $10,000 damage to a Peabody mobile home last July 5.State law restricts fireworks use to licensed professionals supervised by local fire officials, according to the fire marshal?s office. Lynn Fire Department Lt. Israel Gonzalez said even sparklers pose a burn danger.?The temperature at the end of a lit sparkler can reach 1,200 degrees,” Gonzalez said.Food-cooking grills can also pose structural fire dangers and are prohibited from being stored on decks, porches or balconies under state law. McDonald said fires caused by improperly positioned grills put property owners at risk of having fire-damage claims denied by insurers.?We?ve had fires spread from grills and burn a house down,” Gonzalez said.Although outdoor fireplaces called chimineas are sold in stores, McDonald said they are prohibited in Lynn.?They are legal to sell. They are illegal to use without a permit, and we don?t permit them,” he said.