KNOXVILLE — As fireworks rang out high above World's Fair Park and the Festival on the 4th, people in neighborhoods around Knoxville shot off illegal fireworks.
Knoxville Police say they got more calls about illegal fireworks than they could respond to. They prioritized responding to calls where people were in danger.
"It is a city ordinance violation so we do answer as many of them as we can, but sometimes there are just too many to answer," said Sgt. Shawn Shreve with the Knoxville Police Department. "We’ve had a number of calls like that where people are actually shooting the roman-candles or different things at each other."
KPD prioritized making sure everyone was staying safe on the road. Officers issued a total of 441 traffic citations during the 4th of July holiday period. 182 were for speeding. Additionally, officers made six arrests for DUI. 50 additional misdemeanor arrests were made and 15 felony arrests.
THP issued a total of 273 citations and made seven arrests. Included in the 273 citations were 102 citations for speeding, 56 for seatbelt violations, four for DUI and eight for drug possession.
People who called to complain about the fireworks say the booms scared their pets.
"They were very bad. They are the worst I’ve seen since I lived in the neighborhood," said Kristin Keahey, who lives in North Knoxville. "There were a lot more of them. They started early and it was after midnight before they stopped."
Keahey's dog got spooked by the loud booms and was hiding for much of the day. Her cat ran away and didn't return until the next morning. Finally, Keahey called the police to ask if there was anything they could do to stop people in her North Knoxville neighborhood from shooting off illegal fireworks.
"One of my outside cats took off and didn’t come back until this morning. Lily (her dog) was so upset she ended up having an accident inside because she wouldn’t go outside,"said Keahey. "It would just be nice if people would realize what they’re doing. They’re upsetting the pets, putting the neighbors in danger."