QUINCY – Firefighters spent about an hour and a half Saturday night putting out a brush fire on Pine Island started by the city's Flag Day fireworks show. 

"With the dry weather conditions, it was kind of a recipe to get Pine Island going. There is a lot of dry, thick brush out there," Quincy Fire Chief Joe Jackson said. 

The city annually launches fireworks over Blacks Creek near Merrymount Park, and Jackson said it has started brush fires on Pine Island for the last several years. He said he staffs extra crews for the event. 

"We know, if it does get going, we're going to have an hour or two of work ahead of us," he said. "It's never an exposure issue for residents, it's the type of landscape we look for when it comes to controlled  burns and, all things considered, it is a very safe place to set off fireworks." 

There are no homes on Pine Island and it is is surrounded completely by water. Blacks Creek is on one side and there are hundreds of feet of bog area on the other. No firefighters were injured putting out the flames. 

Can I go to jail for fireworks?Here are the laws in Massachusetts

Coming up: Here's where and when you can see fireworks on the South Shore this summer

"These guys are the best in the business at what they do," Jackson said. "They're very well trained and very good at what they do. I appreciate all their efforts in going to put this out at the end of the night." 

Massachusetts has an all-out ban on consumer fireworks. The use of fireworks by anyone who is not a licensed professional is against the law.  Fireworks that are bought outside the state cannot be brought into Massachusetts. Sparklers are also banned.

According to the state, there have been 944 fires and explosions involving illegal fireworks in Massachusetts in the past 10 years, causing three civilian injuries, 43 fire service injuries and millions of dollars in damage.

Jackson said the explosives and recent dry weather is "a recipe to get a fire going." 

"Residents shouldn't be setting off fireworks anyway. It should be left to the professionals," Jackson said. 

When, where and why:Everything to know about the nation's longest-running Flag Day parade in Quincy

Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Patriot Ledger subscription. Here is our latest offer. 

Reach Mary Whitfill at mwhitfill@patriotledger.com.