The Illinois State Fire Marshal's office is reminding municipal government officials who want to light up the July 4 night sky to apply for a permit by Thursday.
The fire marshal says that state law requires government bodies to have a pyrotechnic distributor license to be able to hire operators for their Independence Day celebrations.
Applications must be received by June 15 to process them in time.
The permits allow the employment of operators who have a valid explosives license from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. They must also have individual explosives licenses from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
