Bayville's bonfire ban observed -- mostly

Three years after it was enacted, Bayville's ban on beach bonfires -- for generations a Fourth of July tradition -- seems to have taken hold, officials said.

Village and Nassau County police officials said that, with the village putting out a reminder of the ban and a heavy police presence on the beach, only three fires were seen along the Long Island Sound shoreline Monday night. Two were small fires started by children using driftwood. And one large fire was snuffed out before it was fully ablaze. Police issued no summonses.

In the three Independence Days since the ban was put in place, there have only been two or three fires each year. Before the ban, more than 25 fires were often built from scrap wood, old furniture and even boats doused with gasoline.

Mayor Douglas Watson proclaimed the law a success. "I think people have gotten the message and have been very cooperative. It's really about having control of our village. I think everybody who lives here knows the mess you live with the whole summer after the fires are out."

Besides concerns about air and water pollution and nails from the fire littering the sand, the village law was a result of a little girl being burned by firecrackers thrown into a fire in 2008. The law, which mirrors a county law, also makes it illegal for people to stockpile combustible materials or bring them to the beach. Violations can be punished by a $1,500 to $5,000 fine and up to 15 days in jail.