By By James Crawford
News Editor
New Year's Eve can be an exciting time for kids and adults alike; watching the ball drop on TV, partying with friends or sharing time with loved ones. Even though New Year's is about remembering good times and looking forward to new ones don't forget about safety and responsibility while you celebrate the change to 2003 Atmore Police Communications Officer Glen Carlee warns.
"Nationwide, there are lots of accidents from fireworks like eye injuries and burns. If parents are going to let their kids do it, they need to have parental supervision and they need to try and do it earlier in the evening so they won't disturb their neighbors."
Carlee says most of the complaints on New Year's Eve come from upset neighbors when fireworks are set off late at night and disturb their sleep or upset their animals. Another consideration is to make sure to keep your fireworks on your own property. According to Carlee, the main types of fireworks citizens make complaints about are bottle rockets, which can travel an extended distance beyond small yards and could cause potential harm. "There is a fear of starting a fire or just the fact of having to pick up the debris," Carlee said.
The City of Atmore currently prohibits the sale and use of fireworks in the city limits and according to Carlee the department plans to handle firework complaints on a case by case basis and not send out patrols looking for violators.
However, the department does plan to aggressively look for New Year's Eve drunk drivers out on the roads. "If you're going to go to a party or a get together and drink, you need to have a designated driver to get you home safely. We will be in full force looking for DUI's on New Year's," Carlee said.