Western suburbs residents worry about increasing illegal firework use

Altona and Williamstown residents are worried illegal fireworks could cause a huge blaze in their suburbs as police vow to crack down.

Fireworks in Wiliamstown on Friday, January 6. Residents say they've had enough.

Police have warned people caught setting off illegal fireworks could face serious consequences amid a spate of incidents in the western suburbs in recent weeks.

Altona and Williamstown residents are feeling fed up at the havoc being caused across their suburbs as people flock to their beaches on warm, summer days.

In recent weeks trees, shrubs and even a football interchange bench have been burnt after illegal fireworks were set off in parks and reserves, causing residents to feel on edge and anxious about whether the situation will continue to escalate.

Residents have taken to social media to condemn the behaviour, labelling it as “absolutely shocking” and “so dangerous”.

“This sort of behavior is not okay,” another said.

Williamstown resident Justin Bellette was watching television with his wife on Friday night when he heard several consecutive bangs.

Hoon drivers are common in the area on a summer night but when he saw a warm glow from his beach-facing window he realised something was amiss.

He then noticed the flames in the carpark on the corner of the Esplanade and Victoria St.

“A small fire started in a bush and it then became quite big,” Mr Bellette said. “It was a really windy day so it was worrying.”

A park sits on one side of the car park and the Williamstown Surf Life Saving Club on the other.

Mr Bellette said a parked car, the reserve or the club could have been damaged if the conditions were right for the fire to spread and firefighters didn’t arrive so quickly.

He also worried that somebody could have been seriously injured as a result of the “bravado”.

“Safety is the issue,” he said. “I’m just glad nobody was hurt and there was minimal property damage.”

He questioned where the police who had been walking the beach and patrolling the area during lockdowns had disappeared to this summer.

“I’d never seen so many police around the beach during the lockdowns but it’s now pretty rare to see them,” he said.

Hobsons Bay Inspector Paul Morgan said police were aware of reports of illegal fireworks around Altona and Williamstown in recent weeks.

“In response, local police have bolstered patrols in the area,” he said.

Inspector Morgan encouraged the community to continue reporting incidents, including those resulting in property damage, so police could investigate.

“Fireworks pose a major health and safety risk to the community and can only be used by licensed pyrotechnicians.

“Using fireworks in summer can also start fires, which is something we all want to prevent.”

He said anyone thinking of using illegal fireworks “should reflect on whether they want to risk being responsible for the death or serious injury of another person”.

Anyone caught using fireworks without a licence can face criminal charges, including jail, for up to 15 years.

They can also be fined thousands of dollars.