Fireworks are a part of just about every Fourth of July celebration, but the state is cracking down on who is being allowed to buy them.
Connecticut has very strict laws regarding the types of fireworks that can be sold. Legal fireworks in Connecticut can not shoot into the air, they can only spray sparks close to the ground.
But even those legal fireworks can't be sold to anyone under 16. That's why the Department of Consumer Protection joined Danbury Police on a sting to find distributors selling to kids younger than that.
Undercover investigators went into eight Danbury businesses accompanied by a 15-year-old on Friday to see if any of the establishments would sell to the minor.
A TNT Store on Newtown Road, along with two roadside tents, on on North Street and another on Mill Plain Road all sold fireworks to the 15-year-old, according to the Department of Consumer Protection. Three roadside tents were also found to be operating without the proper vendor's license.
"Fireworks are not toys," Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell said. "Sparklers burn at 1200 degrees Fahrenheit; 300 degrees higher than the temperature for melting glass."
Vendors could face fines and 90 days in jail for each violation, according to the Department of Consumer Protection.
