RIVERVIEW, Fla — It's been a busy holiday week for fire officials across Hillsborough County.
Crews responded to seven house fires caused by fireworks, an uptick compared to years past.
"It was absolutely unbelievable. Pretty scary to watch," Tanya Ryder Mcculloch said.
A giant plume of smoke, people frantically screaming that there's a fire— that's how neighbors recall their Independence Day after a clubhouse in Riverview went up in flames.
"Sure enough we come around this corner and the roof was what seemed like 10ft tall of flames," Ryder Mcculloch shared.
Ryder Mcculloch said she feels like this year there were more fireworks being lit up in her neighborhood than ever before.
"We did notice there was a lot of what looked like fireworks that really should not be set off in residential areas," Ryder Mcculloch added.
Debris and a charred up car are all that's left of a garage in Seffner.
"It made me shed some tears. It was sad. I knew this personal property all my family was outside. I was very thankful," Cynthia Gadson said.
Gadson said she went out of her way to safely discard any fireworks, adding that officials are still investigating the cause of the fire that engulfed her garage.
HCFR said a total of seven homes caught fire on the Fourth of July. Two people suffered serious injuries on the holiday.
- U-haul box truck caught fire after firework shoot — University area
- Fireworks shot into garage (lit rags/ wood on fire) — Brandon
- Clubhouse fire result of fireworks — Riverview
- Garage (fireworks placed in garbage can prior to fire) — Seffner
- Discarded fireworks in front of roll of carpet/ spread to house and attic — Citrus Park
- Fireworks in bed of truck — Brandon
- Discarded fireworks in front of apartment door — Southshore
- Significant hand injuries as a result of fireworks — Seffner
- Significant eye injuries as a result of fireworks — Ruskin
Tampa Fire Rescue said they responded to two incidents that were fireworks-related.
- Firework discharged into a crowd injuring an adult female and a juvenile male—Belmont Heights
- House and car fire caused by improperly discarded firework—South Tampa
"You're going to want to be careful of surrounding buildings whether there's debris or grass. You'll want to be in an open area that's not going to catch other things on fire," Gil Reyes Deputy Chief of Operations with HCFR said.
Reyes is urging people to use fireworks safely as they expect the upward trend to continue throughout the holiday weekend.
"I have insurance on the home. I have insurance on the car. The cars paid off and still have full coverage insurance so I'm good because we're alive and God can give us more. Just like he gave us this, he can give us more," Gadson said.
"Get down here and help us"
As recovery efforts on Treasure Island continue, residents question FEMA's response and want more help bringing supplies in and out.
