County judge declares local disaster; bans use of fireworks

Parker County Judge Mark Riley has declared a local state of disaster due to the imminent threat to life and property from wildfires and has banned the use of all fireworks in Parker County. Professional displays are not affected by this ban.

The Texas Disaster Act allows county judges to ban the use of fireworks during a disaster for up to 60 hours. The act allows for the governor to extend the ban. 

Fire Danger and drought conditions are measured by the Keetch Byram Drought Index (KBDI), a scale from zero to 800. Low fire danger is zero to 200 on the scale. Moderate fire danger is a KBDI of 200 to 400. High fire danger is 400 to 600 on the KBDI index and extreme fire danger is 600 to 800 on the scale.  Parker County’s KBDI number as of Tuesday, July 3 stands at 629. 

Violation of this order is a Class C Misdemeanor and could result in a fine of up to $500 plus court costs and the seizure of the fireworks.