As the one-year mark after the deadly fireworks explosion on Oʻahu nears, local officials are urging the public not to use illegal fireworks during New Year’s celebrations.
On New Year’s Eve last year, a fireworks explosion at an Āliamanu home killed six people and injured about two dozen others.
A year later, the tragedy is top of mind in the community.
“That's something we never thought would happen, and we'd certainly never want to have happen again,” Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said.
He, along with other city officials, held a news conference on Monday to address the use of illegal fireworks, which has decreased significantly on Oʻahu this year.
The Honolulu Police Department on Monday said it has received about 230 fireworks-related calls since Thanksgiving, compared to about 1,250 calls during the same period in 2024.
Additionally, lawmakers this year passed new laws and allocated more resources to combat the use of illegal fireworks.
That includes the use of drones to find violators, harsher penalties for fireworks violations, and more funds for fireworks law enforcement. Police can now issue $300 tickets to those who shoot off fireworks, while repeat offenders and people whose actions cause serious injury or death could get prison time for felony crimes.
Officials like HPD Interim Chief Rade Vanic are asking the public not to use illegal fireworks — and also warning them about the new laws.
“The Honolulu Police Department is fully committed to using every tool provided under this new law to strengthen enforcement this New Year's Eve. This is because we want to do everything in our power to prevent a tragedy like the one that happened in Āliamanu last year from ever happening again,” Vanic said at the news conference.
“But no matter how many officers we have out in the public enforcing, what we really need is your partnership, the community's partnership. We cannot achieve safety without the support and involvement of the community,” he said.
HPD has also held amnesty events this year, allowing members of the public to surrender illegal fireworks.
The state Department of Law Enforcement said that it plans on announcing indictments against those who have been allegedly involved in shipping illegal fireworks that reach the state.
But there are calls to expedite charges against those who were allegedly involved in the Āliamanu explosion. Twelve people were arrested, but so far, no charges have been filed.
Scott Bell, a Honolulu deputy prosecuting attorney, said it’s been “startling” that family, friends and acquaintances of those who died or were injured have not cooperated in the Āliamanu investigation.
“Any fair-minded person would be willing to cooperate. But what we have seen is lack of cooperation, half-truths, misinformation, and complete information that's contradicted by reliable facts," Bell said Monday.
But Bell denied that the lack of cooperation is the reason there are no charges yet. He said it “speaks to our careful and methodical approach so that … the charges will be proved beyond a reasonable doubt.”
