Gulfport, MS Fire Regulations: Fireworks (2026)
Key Facts
- Sale/possession
- Banned citywide, Code § 10-55(a)
- Exempted items
- Toy caps, toy pistols/canes/guns only
- Public displays
- Written mayor permit required
- Parade items banned
- Smoke bombs, stink bombs, silly string
- Default penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine or 90 days jail
Summary
Gulfport bans selling, giving away, exploding or shooting fireworks anywhere inside city limits under Code § 10-55. The only exceptions are toy paper caps and mayor-authorized public displays. Smoke bombs, stink bombs and silly string are separately banned near parade routes.
(a)Selling, giving away. It shall be unlawful for any person to sell, give or permit to be sold, within the city, any firecrackers, Roman candles, torpedoes, sky rockets, or any explosive commonly known and referred to as fireworks, which includes the pyrotechnics known as "snap-pops"; except that the term "fireworks" shall not include toy pistols, toy canes, toy guns, or other devices in which paper caps manufactured in accordance with United States Interstate Commerce Commission regulations for packing and shipping of toy paper caps are used, or toy pistol paper caps manufactured as provided in this subsection, the sale and use of which shall be permitted.(b)Exploding. It shall be unlawful for any person to explode, use or shoot any fireworks as described in subsection (a) above within the city.(c)Public displays. Public displays of fireworks may be had and made under the written authority first obtained from the mayor.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 68).
Full Breakdown
Section 10-55 of the Gulfport Code makes it unlawful for anyone to sell, give away or permit the sale of firecrackers, Roman candles, torpedoes, sky rockets or any other explosive commonly known as fireworks, including the pyrotechnics known as "snap-pops," within the city. The only carved-out items are toy pistols, toy canes, toy guns and paper-cap devices built to Interstate Commerce Commission packing and shipping standards, which remain legal to sell and use. Subsection (b) separately bans exploding, using or shooting any of those same fireworks anywhere in the city, so possession for personal backyard use is covered even if the fireworks were bought elsewhere.
Subsection (c) opens one door: a public display is allowed only with written authority obtained first from the mayor, and every permit must specify the street, avenue, vacant lot or other location, the date and time, and the organization or citizens running the show, with prior approval from the mayor and city council and reasonable fire precautions taken by both the city and the operators. Subsection (d), added by Ordinance No. 2011 in 1995, separately bans selling, possessing, using or exploding smoke bombs, stink bombs and the aerosol product known as "spray or silly string" at or near parade routes before, during or after any permitted parade in Gulfport.
The ordinance traces to Code 1963 § 17-9 and rests on the state's grant of power to municipal governing authorities to prohibit or regulate fireworks sale and use under Miss. §§ 21-19-15, 45-13-11 and 45-13-13.
Violations & Fines
Section 10-55 does not set its own fine schedule, so a violation defaults to the city's general penalty in Code § 1-9: a fine of up to $1,000, imprisonment of up to 90 days, or both, with each day a violation continues counted as a separate offense. A public display staged without the mayor's prior written authorization is treated the same as an unlawful sale or explosion under this section.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I legally buy fireworks in Gulfport?
Is it legal to set off fireworks I bought outside Gulfport?
How do I get permission for a fireworks display?
Are silly string and smoke bombs banned too?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Gulfport
How Gulfport compares: Cities Where Fireworks Are Banned or Heavily Restricted·Compare Gulfport to another location·View the Mississippi fire regulations overview
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