While many people spent Fourth of July weekend celebrating, the Selma Police Department spent much of their time responding to complaints of shots fired and fireworks in the city.

Between Friday, July 3 and Sunday, July 5, the police department responded to 30 calls for shots fired and 14 calls for fireworks complaints.

“That is pretty much what we are going to run between fireworks complaints and shots fired calls,” said Selma Chief of Police William Riley. “I don’t remember exact numbers, but the calls are similar.”

Police responded to nine calls for shots fired and one call for fireworks complaints Friday.

The numbers spiked Saturday with 11 calls for shots fired and 10 calls for fireworks complaints. Fireworks complaints dropped drastically Sunday with three calls, and shots fired calls only decreased by one, with 10 total calls Sunday.

Riley said one reason the number for shots fired goes up during Fourth of July weekend is because sometimes people mistake fireworks for gunshots.

“We may get 25 or 30 shots fired calls, but some of them are just going to be regular fireworks calls,” Riley said. “Sometimes people think they know, but they don’t really know the difference between a firecracker and a gun going off, so you are going to get a mixture of calls.”

Riley said a lot of people often mistake the sound of an M-80 firecracker for gunfire.

“It is a type of firework that sets off a loud boom, and if you are not familiar with it, it can remind you of a shotgun because the way it sounds,” Riley said. “And it all depends on where it is. You may get a single pop that can be misconstrued as a small caliber weapon.”

Riley said officers spend a lot of time during the weekend responding to fireworks complaints and shots fired calls.

“If they are going to call it in, then our dispatcher is going to dispatch someone over there as soon as they possibly can,” Riley said. “It is tying people up because we have to respond to it. That is why we try to press that about people doing it. It ties us up but not only us, everyone else too.”

Riley said shooting guns into the air is dangerous.

“The thing about the gunfire that people don’t seem to understand is that what goes up has to come down,” Riley said. “Just because you fire something straight up in the air, it isn’t going to come down where you are.”

It is not possible. It is just too dangerous for people to shoot in the air because those projectiles have to come down.”

Even though the amount of shots fired goes up during Independence Day weekend, Riley said the department will continue to warn people against shooting fireworks and guns inside the city limits.

“Every city deals with this. I’ve been in many cities for the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve, and I can tell you, people are going to shoot fireworks, and they are going to shoot in the air,” Riley said.

Fireworks and gunfire are always something the city deals with during holiday weekends, but drinking and driving is also something that keeps law enforcement busy.

The Selma Police Department made one arrest over the weekend for driving under the influence, and the Alabama State Troopers made one arrest as well.

“Even though people may be out there [drinking], a lot of people are taking advantage of having a designated driver, and that is what we want,” Riley said. “That is great to hear. That is music to my ears when people say don’t worry about it chief, I’ve got a designated driver today.”

Riley said he was pleased to see just one DUI arrest, but he would like to see that number fall to zero, along with the number of calls for shots fired and fireworks complaints.

“I would rather have that number lower because it could be that one incident where somebody shoots a projectile into the air, and it strikes and kills somebody,” Riley added. “Luckily we have not had anything like that, but it is always a possibility.”