San Jose police will also deploy drones to assist in identifying locations where illegal fireworks are being set off. Property owners may be subject to administrative fines of up to $100,000.

Police across the county will be on the lookout for illegal fireworks for the the Fourth of July.

Police said a large amount of illegal fireworks in a storage unit caused the building to catch fire and resulted in everything stored inside to be destroyed. Investigators in the days after the fire found several other storage units with more illegal fireworks.

In addition to the Discovery Meadow at the San Jose Children’s Museum and Almaden Lake Park in San Jose, public fireworks displays are scheduled for sites in Cupertino, Gilroy, Milpitas, Mountain View, Morgan Hill and Santa Clara, according to county officials.

County fire officials said public concern about wildfires and drought conditions may have dampened use of fireworks on Fourth of July weekend.

Updated in December 2020, the City of San José now has some of the steepest fines for illegal fireworks use: $1,000 for the first violation, $2,000 for a second violation within 18 months, and $3,000 for a third violation.