No Granite Shoals fireworks; Burnet County prohibits ‘skyrockets’

Granite Shoals might have to welcome 2025 without a bang if the Burnet County burn ban holds. The city usually allows residents to set off fireworks on New Year’s Eve and July 4, but dangerously dry conditions might snuff out Dec. 31 celebrations.
“A burn ban is currently in effect, which prohibits open fires and the use of fireworks within the city at all times,” reads a statement from the Granite Shoals Police Department on Thursday, Dec. 26. “Please be aware that our officers are authorized to issue citations to individuals who violate this ban.”
Burnet County has been under a burn ban since Dec. 19. It prohibits outdoor burning in unincorporated areas. Granite Shoals is the only city in the county that allows fireworks within its limits.
While the county’s burn ban does not totally prohibit fireworks, the Burnet County Commissioners Court on Dec. 10 issued a partial fireworks ban, making it illegal to set off “skyrockets with sticks” and “missiles with fins” in unincorporated areas until after Jan. 2, 2025.
According to Chapter 18- Article 5 of the Granite Shoals Code of Ordinances, it is only legal to set off fireworks in the city on “December 31st beginning at 1:00 p.m. until 1:00 a.m. on January 1st of the next calendar year” and “July 4th beginning at 1:00 p m. until 11:00 p.m. of the same day.”
The city’s fireworks exceptions are overridden if a burn ban is in place during those holidays.
If the county’s burn ban is lifted, the city could allow firework celebrations on Dec. 31 for New Year’s Eve.
The National Weather Service calls for rain Thursday night but clear skies on the last days of 2024.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated that fireworks were prohibited on private property in the unincorporated areas of Burnet and Llano counties during burn bans, but that is not true. Fireworks are, for the most part, legal to set off on private property in the unincorporated areas of Texas counties, even during a burn ban, but commissioners courts can make exceptions to this rule in some cases, such as Burnet County imposing a partial ban on Dec. 10. DailyTrib.com apologizes for the error.