Community centre GM fumes after Diwali celebrants leave fields littered with hazardous debris from unsanctioned fireworks displays

Mandy Furney arrived at the Valley Gardens Community Centre in east Winnipeg Wednesday morning to find the outdoor soccer fields littered with the remains of fireworks from an unsanctioned celebration the previous night.

Furney, the general manager, said her staff spent hours cleaning up hundreds of spent fireworks casings and burned sparkler wires at the centre, at 218 Antrim Rd. The mess was so large that a crew from the City of Winnipeg was dispatched to help.

“It looks like several fields covered in fireworks — blanketed,” Furney said. “Unlit fireworks with matches and lighters were found, and these grounds are covered by students in the mornings … It’s a huge safety concern.”

The situation ignited a call for stronger regulation and enforcement over the use of fireworks in public spaces such as the community centre field, which is surrounded by multiple schools.

Furney, who was at the centre Tuesday night for a meeting, said hundreds of people walked onto the soccer fields after a formally organized and permitted fireworks display at nearby Kimberly Hill ended.

The display was in recognition of Diwali, an important five-day celebration in Indian culture that is also known as the festival of lights.

City councillors Russ Wyatt and Jeff Browaty helped organize the event in partnership with leaders from local cultural groups.

“There were probably 300 people here, maybe more and they were all setting off fireworks,” Furney said.

“The councillors invited everybody here, and so everybody came, and I don’t think they planned for… the volume of people and the continued celebration after.”

Furney said she called the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service and bylaw officers to report the situation, but they did not immediately respond.

She stressed the centre understands and supports cultural celebrations, including Diwali, but was alarmed by the lack of oversight after the fireworks were supposed to have ended. Furney noted the centre has had minor issues with fireworks in the past, resulting from celebrations on New Year’s Eve and Canada Day.

Wyatt (Transcona) said he and Browaty (North Kildonan) agreed to provide about $1,000 each in support toward the event. They hired Archangel Fireworks to put on the display, and all debris left over in the permit area was promptly cleaned up.

They had a written agreement with representatives from the Khalsa Diwan Society of Manitoba and Guru Nanak Darbar who agreed to monitor and clean up any mess from unsanctioned fireworks after the formal display.

“We raised this with them and they gave me assurances they would do that — clearly, that did not happen. So, next year, if they want the funding for the fireworks again, they are going to have to get their act together,” Wyatt said.

“The (Valley Gardens Community Centre) is absolutely right to be upset about it; I would be upset about it, too.”

A representative from Guru Nanak Darbar, who declined to provide his name, apologized for the unsanctioned fireworks. He said he was not aware the Diwali celebration spread to the nearby fields, and learned about the mess only when contacted by the Free Press the following afternoon.

“This is a way to learn, so we will do better next year,” he said.

A permit is required to set off fireworks within city limits. Holders must do so in a space with a 30.5-metre (100-foot) clearance away from buildings and trees. They must also have access to water or an extinguisher nearby.

The city received more than 20 applications for fireworks permits at events Monday and Tuesday. Six consumer permits and two “high-hazard permits were approved,” a city spokesperson said.

Failing to abide by the city bylaw can result in a $500 fine.

The strength of Winnipeg’s fireworks enforcement is an ongoing subject of debate at city hall, where Coun. Janice Lukes has called for the public service to review current bylaws.

“I don’t want to shut fireworks down, I just want to ensure we are doing it safely… I’m going to ask them to see what other cities are doing with how to regulate this and monitor it,” said Lukes (Waverley West).

“It’s not just Diwali celebrations.”

Lukes also organized a formal Diwali celebration in her neighbourhood Tuesday, and said she believes fewer people set off unsanctioned fireworks there as a result. However, she got some complaints from constituents primarily concerned about noise disruptions late into the night.

Only members of the fire department can issue fireworks-related fines, making enforcement of the bylaws difficult, she said.

“People still are doing fireworks in their backyard,” she said. “I will be honest, it’s very difficult to catch somebody in the act.… And the (firefighters), they have 1,000 better things to do.”

She said the city should introduce an education campaign about the safe use of fireworks.

Lukes’ motion to review fireworks bylaws will move ahead at the next community services committee meeting on Nov. 4.

— with files from Nicole Buffie

tyler.searle@freepress.mb.ca