PORTLAND — Oregon residents will no longer be allowed to release sky lanterns into the air under a new law set to take effect in 2017.
KGW-TV reports that starting Jan. 1, people caught releasing the lanterns, also known as Chinese lanterns, will face fines of up to $2,000.
A sky lantern is a paper sack suspended over a flame, usually from a small candle. The hot air from the flame causes the balloon to rise into the sky and be carried off by the wind.
Oregon Chief Deputy Fire Marshal Mariana Ruiz-Temple says the lanterns are uncontrolled and “pose an extreme fire hazard to people, property and the environment.”
