Sunny forecast for fireworks sales?
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MARK AUSTIN THOMAS: July 4th means fireworks. Last year, fireworks consumption reached a record-high of 255 million pounds. Will this year rocket past that one? Alex Cohen takes a look.
ALEX COHEN: The weather this year certainly hasn’t helped. Thunderstorms are predicted in some regions already soggy from intense rains and flooding.
Drought is also taking a toll. Many dry areas of the country are enforcing burn bans and prohibiting the purchase of everything from sparklers to roman candles.
Julie Heckman is the executive director of the American Pyrotechnics Association. She says despite the weather, the fireworks industry is still on track to beat out last year’s revenue of $880 million dollars.
JULIE HECKMAN: Part of that is just the improvement in the performance of backyard fireworks.
Heckman says many counties enforcing burn bans have set aside designated areas where revelers can light backyard fireworks safely.
I’m Alex Cohen for Marketplace.
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