The Widder Curry Says: ‘They’re Fire Crackers – Not Fireworks!’

By Judi Curry

Within the past few weeks, Sunset Cliffs has become a more dangerous place to live than ever before.  Dangerous because of the noise and air pollution; dangerous because of possibility of more accidents, both “cliff-wise” and automobile wise; more dangerous because our first responders will not be able to fulfill their job because of the additional traffic on the road.  Yes, I am angry; upset, tired and irritated.

Let’s start with the new 4 way stop signs on the corner of Pt. Loma Avenue and Sunset Cliffs Blvd.

I counted 29 cars stopped at the corner going north after the sunset yesterday.  Prior to that I watched people speed up once they passed the stop sign, going south to watch the sunset.  I watched people on motor scooters and bikes ignore the signs completely and just go through them while cars were making turns onto the same road as the riders.

I watched – and hoped – that there was not an emergency because if there was there would be no way that our first responders would have been able to respond because there was no place for the lines of cars to go. They could not have pulled over; chaos would have reigned.  But just because there were no accidents yesterday, I would be willing to wager that in a very short period of time there will be an accident, and the responders will be called, and it won’t be a pretty sight.

There is no question that that intersection is a dangerous one.  But in the 50+ years that I have lived here I am not aware of many accidents at that intersection.  If something is/was needed it should have been a signal, operational by a “pressure plate” so that it was not going on and off all the time.  As the summer progresses traffic is going to get worse; pollution will increase, and there will be many more incidents involving cars, scooters, pedestrians, etc.  I think that those stop signs should be removed – maybe the cement is still wet.  I shudder to think of the statistics at the end of October if they are allowed to remain.

And let’s talk about one other thing that has my blood boiling.

But… for the last 5 nights I have been woken up by the sound of fire crackers. Last night there were two groups of 5 starting at 12:45 am.  The night before there were fire crackers being shot off at 10:00 pm and again at 11:30 pm. The night before there were fire crackers at 1:00 am; the night before that there were so many that I cannot even begin to tell you when it started and when it ended.  And, to make matters worse, the people shooting off the fire crackers were all in a long limo that were “partying” in the first parking lot on the cliffs.  It almost sounded like, besides shooting them off in the lot, they were throwing them into backyards around the area.

And I want to make sure that people realize that, for the most part, these are fire crackers, not “fire works.”  In case you are not sure of the difference, here is the definition of “fire works” – “a device containing gunpowder and other combustible chemicals that causes a spectacular explosion when ignited, used typically for display or in celebration.”

For the most part this is NOT what is being tossed into the ocean, the street, the backyard by these party goers.  No. What they are throwing out are – again – fire crackers – “A loud, explosive firework, typically wrapped in paper and lit with a fuse.”  The basic difference, for those of you that aren’t quite sure, might be more helpful if stated this way:  “Some fireworks set off fountains of colored sparks for a visual display at ground level, others explode to make showers of colored sparks in the sky, some make noises. Firecrackers are small but loud fireworks that explode at ground level without any visual sparks. They are usually joined together in long strings.”

Firecrackers have no purpose other than to make noise!  And… both are illegal for private persons to have in San Diego.

(And let me add that this problem is just not Sunset Cliffs.  Many cities all over the United States are complaining about the same thing.)

And it just isn’t me that is upset, irritated, angry, etc, at this display of disregard.  For starters, people suffering from PTSD, particularly veterans, have flashbacks when they hear the sounds.  It brings back war memories.  Animals, particularly dogs, freak out when they hear the sounds and frequently manage to run away from their homes just to get away from the noise.  The 4th of July has more lost dogs than other time during the year.  And it is dangerous.  Let me tell you a true story:

It was my last year of teaching 6th grade in Chula Vista.  I was leaving teaching in the public school to become an Assistant Professor at San Diego State.  As a “graduation” gift to my class, I invited the entire class and their parents to my house for a swim party on July 4th with the thought that we would walk to the cliffs and watch the fireworks at the pier.  As the class arrived, the students were talking about their class president – Johnny – and how worried they were about him.  (He was an extraordinary student – excelled in all areas; a fantastic baseball player, etc.)  I asked what happened to him and it seemed that the night before he and a few of the students were shooting off firecrackers and he didn’t let go in time.  He blew off three of his fingers – on his dominant hand.  A 12 year old boy; maimed for life; because he wanted the excitement of shooting off a firecracker.

As I read more about firecrackers, I am not surprised to see that what happened to Johnny happens a lot.  And why? Can the thrill be that great that you are willing to risk losing a limb – or worse – to hear a lot of noise?  I remember watching people throw firecrackers at other people and they had to dodge them.  Why?

In tying together the 4 way stops and the traffic and the shooting of the firecrackers, I can only hope that our first responders will get to the victim fast enough to save their lives.  Better still, I would like to see those people with the firecrackers be caught and fined so that the rest of us do not have to suffer from sleep deprivation – or worse.