South Dakota Fireworks On

Jun 21, 2023

Pyrotechnics lovers can start to rejoice! We are down to T-minus one week and counting until South Dakota residents can legally buy 4th of July fireworks again in the state.

Soon your radio and television will be inundated with fireworks ads every hour because fireworks officially go on sale in just a few days here in the land of the free and the home of the boom.

Those of us who call South Dakota our home can legally buy boxes and boxes of pyrotechnics in all corners of the state from June 27 until July 5.

South Dakota residents can even purchase them again later, from (December 28) through (January 1) as fireworks are once again legal to shoot again in South Dakota on New Year's Eve. Although, it seems participation in that pyrotechnics event is far less than on the 4th of July since it's typically around 15 below zero by that time of the year in this state. You stand a much greater risk of freezing your digits off rather than blowing them off in a fireworks accident in December in South Dakota.

Yes and no. Fireworks like; sparklers, snakes, parachute pieces without a flare, basically, anything that doesn't have a report are legal within city limits year-round.

However, fireworks that fly in the air with a report (in other words, the cool stuff that goes boom and lights up the sky) are illegal to shoot inside Sioux Falls city limits.

In theory, should a member of Sioux Falls finest catch you in the act of discharging illegal fireworks inside Sioux Falls city limits, you could be subject to a $95.00 fine in some cases.

Someone really needs to drop that little nugget of information on the people in my neighborhood. Last 4th of July it sounded like a war zone on Sioux Falls's west side.

Some of the people that live in my neighborhood were putting on fireworks displays last year that would rival the ones seen at the fairgrounds. At one point, it got so out of hand last year where I live, that my two dogs still run for cover every time they hear a mouse fart in the neighborhood. (My dogs absolutely hate the 4th of July!)

If you plan on camping over the 4th, you should also probably know that fireworks are strictly prohibited in every South Dakota state park.

Here are a few basic rules and reminders courtesy of the National Safety Council:

Have a safe and happy Independence Day holiday. And as Sergeant Phil Esterhaus would say on the television show "Hill Street Blues,"..."Let's Be Careful Out There."

Source: South Dakota Legislature.gov/National Safety Council