DES MOINES, Iowa — Fourth of July is usually a fun day for most to grill out and celebrate with family and friends – but for those in uniform, the holiday can be a stressful event.
The Des Moines Police Department said that, during the 2022 Fourth of July holiday weekend, they received a total of 622 firework-related complaints. Of those, nearly half of all complaints were made on July 4.
"Interestingly enough, we actually have less calls for service reps or reference fireworks this year compared to the last couple years. So the complaints have gone down a little bit," Bryan said.
Sgt. Jason Bryan with the West Des Moines Police Department said that there were approximately 96 firework-related calls with 41 of them being made on the Fourth of July.
Both departments didn't share any reports of serious injuries by fireworks this year, but there were a few instances of firework-related fires that started in the metro, including a house fire in Waukee.