WATCH: Aurora Mayor Calls Out Residents Who Shoot Off Fireworks

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin held a press conference yesterday (Tuesday) where he addressed Fourth of July celebrations within the city. He spent several minutes on an emotional plea for people to refrain from using illegal fireworks.

Here is the audio of the portion of his presentation about illegal fireworks (you can watch the mayor’s entire press conference below).

According to the mayor, complains calls regarding fireworks are up 150% in Aurora. I’ve read cities like Milwaukee are seeing complains rise 600%! So this is not just an Aurora or Illinois issue. Cities across the country are seeing a huge uptick in amateur fireworks.

— CITY OF AURORA PLANNING FOURTH OF JULY PROCESSION TO HONOR HEALTH CARE WORKERS —

The mayor also made it clear that fireworks complaints do not warrant an emergency call to 911. Instead, residents should call 630-256-9000.

For me personally, this is a topic that I can see both sides. On one hand, it is the law, whether you like it or not. And there’s no doubt that a lot of residents have legitimate issues with fireworks going off in their neighborhood beyond just being annoyed. On the other hand, it really has become a tradition, right? We know it’s going to happen every year and we should be prepared for it, illegal or not. And this year especially, people

If I have to choose a side, then I suppose I fall on side of empathy. If I’m having a party in my backyard and my neighbor asks me to turn down the music, I’m going to turn down the music because I respect my neighbor. My neighbor’s peace and sanity outweigh my own entertainment. The same would apply for fireworks as well, in my opinion. Even if they were legal, I’d probably leave it up to the pros.