Kaboom Fireworks sells a variety of fireworks, firecrackers and sparklers out of a large trailer in Halton Hills, Ontario on May 16, 2024.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
Fireworks may be coming to an end in Canada – not with a bang, but a whimper.
Cherry bombs, sparklers and Roman candles used to be a fun DIY thrill enjoyed by friends and neighbours on holidays such as Canada Day, Diwali and Lunar New Year. Grand pyrotechnic spectacles brought whole communities together.
But in recent years, fireworks have become anything but simple.
Irresponsible – not to mention illegal – use of them during pandemic lockdowns saw a huge spike in noise complaints. Recent forest fires across the country have led many jurisdictions to rethink letting people set off explosives that are responsible for hundreds of emergency calls each year. On top of that, fireworks have become politically charged.
As a result, municipalities have begun banning the consumer use and sale of fireworks. The City of Vancouver, West Vancouver and several municipalities in Ontario, including Brampton, Woodstock and Milton have all introduced bans since the start of the pandemic. Halton Hills, a town west of Toronto, voted earlier this month to ban them effective Sept. 1, a decision that will be ratified by council following this long weekend. Edmonton banned their use without a permit in 2022. Meanwhile, several other locales are enacting temporary bans because of fire risks.
Halton Hills, Ontario on May 16, 2024.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
Ingrid Buday wishes Toronto would join the list. The activist and founder of the community group No More Noise Toronto, says she is often woken up in the middle of the night throughout the summer by the sound of fireworks. The group shares information on the city’s bylaws and encourages citizens to tell councillors and staff how noise affects their lives.“If we can’t consider our neighbours and we can’t be respectful of where other people are, or their pets or their health or the environment, then we just need to ban them.”
The frequent use of the explosive devices started during the pandemic and hasn’t stopped, she says.
The number of fireworks complaints received by the City of Toronto each year seems to bear that out. In 2020, that number was 175. In 2021, when lockdown orders were still in effect for much of the year, it jumped to 2,451. In 2022 and 2023, it climbed to more than 3,500.
Brampton banned fireworks in 2022, a year it saw 1,491 calls related to them, up from 492 in 2018.
Kaboom Fireworks sells a variety of fireworks, firecrackers and sparklers out of a large trailer in Halton Hills, Ontario on May 16, 2024.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
As complaints increased, so too did the number of fires caused by fireworks.
Between 2013 and 2020, the number of fires in Ontario resulting in an injury, fatality or property damage resulting from fireworks reported to the province’s Office of the Fire Marshal averaged 16 a year. In 2021, that number jumped to 35. In 2022, the last year from which data is available, the number ticked up again, to 36.
Fire departments across the country now respond to about 700 calls originating with fireworks annually, says Ken McMullen, president of the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs. “This isn’t about fun or not. This is about literally keeping our communities safe.”
In 2022, the organization adopted a resolution calling on the federal government to institute a complete ban on the use of consumer fireworks by anyone not certified to use them.
Aleem Kanji, chief advocacy officer for the Canadian National Fireworks Association, argues that education on the safe and proper use of fireworks is needed, not bans, which only create underground, illegal markets for them.
Fred Wade, president of the Canadian Pyrotechnic Council, another industry group, says banning fireworks deprives Canadians of the sort of community gatherings that are becoming increasingly rare.
“There aren’t too many opportunities for your community to come together where people bring a Frisbee or cooler and a blanket and come out hours before the show to pick their favourite spot and just hang out,” he says.
For some groups, it’s more than just a matter of fun.
Banning fireworks would rob all those who celebrate Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, of an essential part of the celebrations, says Paresh Soni, executive director of Hindu Legacy, an advocacy organization in London, Ont.
“Imagine not having gifts or Christmas trees for Christmas. It is literally that integral to Diwali,” he says.
On the flip side, cultural sensitivities have led to the cancellation of several fireworks shows in recent years.
Phatboy Fireworks sells a variety of fireworks, firecrackers and sparklers out of a trailer in Halton Hills, Ontario on May 16, 2024.Sammy Kogan/The Globe and Mail
Last year, Calgary’s city planning committee announced plans to do away with fireworks celebrations on Canada Day, citing Truth and Reconciliation commitments and the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Exclusion Act. The decision was ultimately reversed.
The Forks, a national historic site in Winnipeg, cancelled its Canada Day fireworks in 2022, after the discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves at residential school sites across the country
Such moves have been highly criticized.
“People list fireworks in their virtue signal list to get attention without any sort of backing, just like people who want to complain about whatever is a fad to complain about,” says Kelly Guille, owner of Archangel Fireworks in Winnipeg. “And it’s shifted as well to politicians who need to make a mark by making you look the other way.”
Last year, the Forks opted for a drone show instead of fireworks for its July 1 celebrations.
“We really felt a drone show would be able to play more into what we were trying to accomplish with the day and the sentiment we were trying to leave with people, both that mix of a reflection of what it means to be a country and a community and then also a moment of sort of celebration,” says Zachary Peters, the Forks’ communications and marketing manager.
There will be no fireworks again this year on Canada Day, with a focus instead on daytime activities.
In Ontario, many residents of Halton Hills may not know this could be their last Victoria Day weekend to enjoy their own fireworks.
The decision will have a final vote by council on May 27, but so far only a handful of people have objected, Mayor Ann Lawlor says.
“Just because we think something is fun or have traditionally thought it so, it’s still worth having a look and doing a check again to see whether or not our actions are having negative repercussions,” she says.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article did not identify Ingrid Buday’s affiliation with the community group No More Noise Toronto. This version has been updated.
Dave McGinn