After months of lockdowns and restrictions, the city of Santa Clarita is excited to announce that the annual July 4 fireworks spectacular, “Spirit of America,” will take place this year with a dazzling display of lights illuminating the sky over Westfield Valencia Town Center.

The fireworks show will begin at 9:15 p.m. on Saturday, July 4. Details are still being finalized, so please stay tuned to the city’s social media pages for more information.

The city would also like to remind residents that all fireworks are illegal in Santa Clarita. City officials ask residents not to spark fear by indulging in illegal firework activity, and instead, leave the fireworks to the professionals.

“As we get closer to the Fourth of July holiday, many residents are concerned about the fire danger and loud explosions that come from illegal firework use,” said Mayor Cameron Smyth. “We are once again monitoring our Resident Service Center, where community members can pinpoint and submit exact locations where fireworks are being set off.”

Through the “Illegal Fireworks” category in the city’s Resident Service Center, or RSC, residents can report locations that have been problem areas for illegal fireworks in past years. This information will be automatically transmitted to the Sheriff’s Department so they can enter it into their database and know where they should focus their patrols. This information gathered will be used to “predictively” map out problem areas of concern for law enforcement efforts.

Reporting illegal fireworks through RSC will NOT result in an immediate response from the Sheriff’s Department. The Resident Service Center is accessible on the city’s website and through the Santa Clarita mobile app.

“Our first responders have been through so much these past few months, as our entire community has,” Smyth said. “Let’s not add any extra burden to our emergency room workers, firefighters and other first responders by using illegal fireworks that can cause burns, injuries and destructive fires.”

In Santa Clarita, fireworks are a violation of the Santa Clarita Municipal Code, Health and Safety Code and Los Angeles County Fire Code. The public is encouraged to report illegal fireworks anonymously by calling the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station at 661-255-1121. Please do not dial 9-1-1 to report illegal fireworks unless it is a life-threatening emergency.

The loud noises emitted from the fireworks spectacular can cause stress and trauma to our proud veterans. In addition, more pets run away on the Fourth of July than any other day of the year because of stress caused by the sounds.

For more information on firework use in Santa Clarita, firework municipal code, pet safety and additional resources, visit Santa-Clarita.com/Fireworks.