Deer Island caught fire again on Fourth of July in Biloxi. What’s the solution?

Biloxi’s leaders are debating how to lower the risk of brush fires after Deer Island ignited again this year during an annual Fourth of July fireworks show.

The city and its fire chief said this week they are considering several solutions for next year, including possibly adjusting the spot where fireworks launch from a barge and stationing a fire crew on the island to quickly stamp out flames. The Boom Boom Committee, which organizes the fireworks show, plans to meet with city leaders in the next two weeks.

“We’re open to any suggestions,” said chairman Jerry Munro. “We’ll be glad to do anything we can.”

The fire that burned Deer Island on Friday night was “likely caused by falling debris from the fireworks barge,” according to a fire department incident report. It was the second such fire in recent years. On the Fourth of July in 2023, according to that year’s fire department report, authorities patrolling the water “witnessed a firework fly off the barge and land on Deer Island.”

“A fire started immediately,” the report says, “and grew rapidly due to high winds.”

Leaders promised this week to discuss solutions and said fires on Deer Island pose little risk. Friday’s flames burned between 2 and 3 acres of brush on the island, which is uninhabited. No one was injured.

Fire Chief Nicholaus Geiser said an unexpected north wind may have blown a falling ember toward the island. Summer winds usually blow away from the island.

“It was very minimal damage,” said Joe Spraggins, executive director of the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources, which oversees Deer Island’s public land. “It looked a lot worse than what it was.”

The Department of Marine Resources scoured the island for hazards and reopened the trails and interior on Monday.

Authorities already patrol the Mississippi Sound during the annual fireworks show to keep boaters away from the barge. But Geiser said the fire department may station more boats on the water next year. Biloxi public affairs manager Cecilia Dobbs Walton also said the city is considering shifting the barge farther south or west next year.

Police officers helped ferry firefighters back and forth on Friday until the fire was extinguished after an hour and a half. “It’s a logistical nightmare to get personnel and equipment out there,” Geiser said. The shallow shoreline also challenges firefighters who need enough water to douse flames.

Fires on Deer Island are rare. But leaders said lightning strikes and camping mishaps occasionally ignite the land. Spraggins said the Department of Marine Resources also lights prescribed burns “on a regular basis” to control the underbrush.

The Boom Boom Committee has been shooting fireworks in Biloxi since 1978. Munro, its chairman, said the group shot $40,000 worth of fireworks this year. “This is a patriotic celebration in a very patriotic area of the country,” he said.

“We take this very seriously,” he added. “We’ll get to the bottom of it.”