Calm Fourth of July night, but police continue illegal fireworks search this weekend
It was a relatively calm night on the Fourth of July as fire departments and police agencies responded to calls for illegal fireworks throughout Stanislaus County.
But law enforcement officials are hoping holiday partygoers don’t try to extend the mischief into the weekend.
“That’s what we’re hoping for,” said Sgt. Tom Letras, a spokesman for the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department. “We’re hoping they weren’t just saving it for the rest of the weekend.”
The Ceres Police Department on Friday morning posted on Facebook an update to its illegal fireworks campaign. The department said it received 311 calls reporting illegal fireworks from 5 p.m. Thursday through 1:30 a.m. Friday, and 43 people were cited.
“Officers will be out again tonight looking for those using illegal fireworks,” Ceres police officials warned on Facebook.
Ceres police asked residents to call 209-538-5683 to report illegal fireworks or send an e-mail to fireworkshotline@cerespolice.com.
The Modesto Fire Department reported Thursday night was surprisingly calm for a July 4 holiday. There were a lot of calls reporting illegal fireworks. There were no calls for burn injuries related to illegal fireworks, according to fire officials. Firefighters responded to a trash can on fire overnight, but nothing much more significant than that.
On Thursday afternoon, the Modesto and Ceres fire departments responded to a report of a fire in the 200 block of Primo Way, just east of Crows Landing Road in south Modesto.
The brush fire rapidly spread to parked vehicles and threatened nearby buildings, fire officials said in a Facebook post late Thursday. Firefighters quickly corralled the blaze, stopping the flames from damaging the buildings.
But the flames reached eight vehicles and destroyed them. No injuries were reported. The Stanislaus Regional Fire Investigation Unit was called to try to determine the cause and origin of the fire. There was no indication on Thursday that this fire was caused by fireworks.
Earlier on Thursday, the Modesto Fire Department evacuated a portion of a senior living complex in the 3100 block of Napier Drive in Modesto. The two-alarm fire was contained in a first-floor apartment, where it was believed to have started.
The Modesto Police Department responded to more than 30 calls for illegal fireworks overnight. But Modesto police Lt. Aaron Tait said there weren’t any significant incidents to report.
In Turlock, firefighters extinguished a blaze that damaged a single-story home in the 3400 block of North Berkeley Avenue that was first reported about 2:30 a.m. Friday as a burning trash can.
The first firefighters arrived and found flames and smoke coming from the home’s garage and side yard, the Turlock Fire Department announced in a news release Friday afternoon. The firefighters attacked the blaze, containing the fire in the garage area.
The flames damaged a PG&E natural gas meter, causing it to ignite. Firefighters carefully approached the meter and shut off the gas. The Ceres Fire Department assisted in the incident.
The fire displaced two adults and five children who were living in the home, fire officials said. Red Cross officials were called to the scene to help the displaced residents. No injuries to the residents were reported. Investigators had not determined the cause of the Turlock house fire.
Letras said the Sheriff’s Department pulled over a couple of people suspected of driving under the influence and responded to several calls reporting someone was drunk in public. But there were no significant incidents.
“Nothing out of the ordinary for so many people out drinking,” Letras said.
The Turlock Fire Department asks anyone with information about the North Berkeley Avenue house fire to call Fire Marshal Mark Gomez at (209) 669-2119 or mgomez@turlock.ca.us.
This story was originally published July 5, 2019 at 1:32 PM.