Police said a family's yard caught fire from people shooting Roman candle fireworks at each other from moving cars Monday night in Tacoma, Washington.
The family was able to quickly put out the grass fire, that did not spread to its house, KIRO reported.
"They're racing around," David Sutton, who lives a few doors down from the family, told KIRO. "As they were coming down I was hearing pops, fireworks going off."
That same night, three people told KIRO that someone in a car with fireworks apparently took aim at a nearby bar with people standing outside.
“You get grass on fire, then you got a house on fire,” Sutton said. “It’s scary, it really is.”
Neighbors shared surveillance video from Monday of a car driving by as the sound of fireworks rattled the area around 12:30 a.m.
Residents said it's not unusual to hear fireworks in the area so close to the Fourth of July holiday. They told KIRO the problem seems worse this year. Fireworks are illegal in the city.
Tacoma Police Department officials said they have yearly patrols that include officers and firefighters who focus on fireworks-related calls. The city receives hundreds of complaints every year, and violators face a $257 fine.
“If you’re driving along the road and someone is sending out fireworks and suddenly they’re in your face, you know, most people are going to panic,” Sutton said. “And now you have an accident."
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