Authorities and residents in Hawaii are wondering whether a New Year's Eve explosion that killed three people and wounded more than 20 will dampen the state's enthusiasm for illegal pyrotechnic displays. In recent years, occasions large and small have provided an excuse for residents across the state to set off increasingly sophisticated fireworks. They are so prevalent that some people consider them part of the state’s culture. But they also have rattled neighborhoods of tightly packed houses, started fires, terrorized pets and sometimes caused deaths. Enforcement of anti-fireworks laws is complicated. As one resident puts it, many people are reluctant to report neighbors on a small island where “everybody knows everybody.”
