Waukegan, IL Fire Regulations: Fireworks (2026)

Section 9-2(b)(1) bans offering, exposing, or selling fireworks at retail, keeping them for sale, or using or exploding them anywhere in the city, with the sole exception of a supervised display for which the fire chief has issued a permit to a fair association, shopping center, or similar organization. An applicant must submit a written application naming the sponsoring organization and operators, a copy of the current explosive/magazine keeper license from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, proof of financial responsibility, the display's date, time and exact location, and a site diagram showing firing points, nearby buildings, and spectator lines.

Section 9-2(d) sets hard distance and safety limits: the firing point must be at least 200 feet from the nearest permanent building, highway, or railroad and 50 feet from overhead telephone or telegraph lines or trees, no display may occur within 500 feet of a school, church, or hospital, spectators must stay at least 200 feet back, and no display may run in wind exceeding 20 miles per hour. Operators must be at least 21, able-bodied, and literate in English, and the permittee pays for a fire department guard at the site.

Nitroglycerin and TNT storage is separately capped at one-quarter pound per building under § 9-2(f). Section 9-2(g) exempts sparklers entirely from the ban for adults 18 and older, and for supervised minors.