TULSA, Okla. — The Tulsa Fire Department responded to 82 fire-related calls on Monday as people celebrated the Independence Day holiday.
That's 35 more calls this than July 4, 2021. The fire department says in the last 24 hours they responded to 44 grass and brush fires compared to five, last year — a 780% increase.
TFD says fireworks led to a large percentage of those grass fires.
“Not only is it a fire danger, it’s a danger to your health, says Tulsa Fire Department's Andy Little. "You can be injured, you can lose fingers. You could lose an eye."
Beyond fireworks this week, the conditions in Tulsa remain high for a continued fire threat.
"The grass is very dry. Vegetation is very dry. Fire starts extremely easy. If you were to light a sparkler, which not everyone associates that with danger, and just dropped it on the ground within minutes you’d have a grass fire."
With these hot temperatures, firefighters are cautious when battling blazes.
“We have a lighter weight gear for grass fires and brush fires that help keep them a little cooler. Structure fires, they're gonna wear full bunker gear and that is pretty hot so we have to be careful to keep them hydrated."
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