What Was That Bang - How to Identify Fireworks And Gunfire
I see this question posted on social media more than anything else that relates to the neighborhood except when people are inquiring about bulk trash day, HOA amenities, and barking dogs. It is definitely a hot topic and one of concern. Did you know that different types of weapons make different acoustic impulses? With a little experience, practice, the help of the neighborhood crime watch blog, and YouTube, you will hopefully be able to tell more effectively what that noise was that everyone was posting about. Let’s break it down and talk about how it can help save you - potentially in a crisis situation.
This is a long blog and since I am providing video entertainment, please get comfortable, grab your family (warning - adult content), and some popcorn.
Please keep in mind that this is a sensitive subject matter that some may find emotionally triggering. After you have had a handgun held to your head with live rounds in it, been shot, shot at, had to shoot someone, etc, your perspective can vastly change as mine has. We need to be understanding of our family, friends, Veterans, and neighbors close to us that are sensitive to the noises and destruction that weapons have caused in their emotional lives.
Please keep in mind that while I have been shooting guns for almost forty years now (it’s Texas y’all) this is not my expertise, so I am learning some new things with you. If you have ideas, comments, and insights to add, please comment below. I have been privileged enough to grow up in an environment where firearms safety and responsibility was taught. My family is current and former law enforcement and my ex and his dad were Firearms Instructors. I have been blessed to have been taught by some of the best, but I still know that my knowledge is extremely limited. The older I get, the more I realize that I have a lot to learn.
Do you have a gun? If so, lock her up for free. It is like they give these things away for free on the internet, but you can pick one up for under $10 if you like.
Rifle - Close Distance
It generally sounds like a belt cracking, whiz, and thud.
Rifle - Farther Away
When someone is shooting a rifle, further away in rapid succession the sound needs more time to travel. Thus, two shots would sound like crack-crack-thud-thud. You will hear the initial explosions prior to hearing the projectile. You will most likely hear these during hunting season and although the Corps runs the lake and the shore, we are in a Non-Corps county. There will be an additional blog to follow on hunting in our area. The Corps of Engineers allows for sales of hunting licenses to be purchased on Corps property. This is why you will see and hear people hunting near (and possibly in) the lake. It is popular to place duck blinds on small boats that are launched into the water.
Handgun - OR - Fireworks
Modern firearms do not produce smoke like fireworks do. People often confuse the neighbor next door for popping off a round into the sky for a firework. There are natural, mechanical restrictions on how fast you can fire a gun. It is going to tend to make a smoother, more rhythmic cadence. With a firecracker, that doesn’t occur. They go off on their schedule because they are working from a highly volatile, lit fuse that is unpredictable.
Fireworks are based on black powder, which we used during the American Revolutionary War, and is typically only used in reenactments because it is tedious, arduous, inefficient, dangerous, and messy. It is also expensive and slow to use a muzzleloader. They are also an excellent exercise in Darwinism when loading them because you have to shove everything in the business end. They aren’t very efficient with the most skilled marksman either and the sites have to constantly be adjusted. The smallest bump is all that is needed to require an adjustment.
When you set off a firework the cloud of smoke that happens after will make the signature pop-pop-pop; however, if you don’t see smoke, call the police. It is likely gunfire.
Part of the fun of fireworks are the noises that come with the adrenaline rush. They typically make lots of pops and bangs, sometimes in rapid succession, often coming from different directions, but they don’t generally make your ears hurt. They scare most small children and dogs hate them as a general rule of thumb. They usually make a whiz-pop noise. Then, you will see the after effects in the sky as the trash rains upon the surrounding area. If you are listening to multiple bottle rockets or black cats that have been placed inside a trash can (y’all know who you are) or under a neighbors window (I am looking at you too), then there is often a pop-pop-pop in rapid succession. Fireworks are usually sporadic since they are shot by amateurs in our area and occasionally followed and/or by preceded by the whizzing noise. If you notice any kind of whistling before or prior to the pop it is most likely it’s a bottle rocket.
For example, my favorite fireworks are rings, coconuts, and snowflakes. They are all pretty similar in appearance, but they are made differently. The ring produces an aerial shell that is also known as Saturn shell. It is actually two displays. One is a peony which is the traditional ball of light that comes to mind when we all think of a regular firework, but then there is another explosion which results in a tail effect that contains flashes of light and small explosive bursts that last several seconds as they cascade toward the ground. The tail effects are usually gold or silver while the center, peony, is colored. Thus, up close, it sounds like whiz-pop-pop-whiz-whirl-whiz. Let’s talk further.
When someone pulls a trigger, they tend to pull it in a rhythmic motion until they are out of ammunition or they get tired. It will create the cadence of an evenly spaced bang-bang-bang sound which is how we know it is much more likely to be a gun. Fireworks will have the sporadic ba-bang, ba-ba-ba-ba-bang of firecrackers because they are unpredictable and dangerous. You may also have the small bang followed by a loud bang if you are fortunate enough to see my favorite.
Multiple shots fired from a single gun will each be equally loud. Handguns are usually around 140 decibels. You can download a decibel meter on your phone. Sound waves reverberate and bounce off buildings, decaying along the way, making it very difficult for the human ear to determine the location of a blast or the direction it is traveling which is why the Doppler effect is imperative. A handgun shot can be heard up to a mile away. At that distance, it might sound like a tap. In our newer, energy efficient homes, you most likely will not hear it at all. At a closer distance, it is more likely to sound like someone dropping a book in a quiet library.
While I know that fireworks are legal in PARTS of Paloma Creek (NOT all), I believe that it is unsafe to use them in a residential area and they should only be used by trained professionals. Please get the family and a few friends and go to Kaboom Town in Addison on July 3rd. They have one of the Top Ten shows in the United States and it is a short drive away. If you park in Dallas, you don’t have to pay a dime. Here is small sample of the fireworks. #LocalGirl #FreeIsGood
Then on July 4th, make sure you don’t miss out on the local show! Little Elm hosts July Jubilee. I prefer to watch from Little Elm High School; however, if you have tweens or teens, Little Elm Beach may be a better fit for your family. We can usually see the shows from Frisco’s Rough Riders simultaneously as well.
I almost lost my Godson to fireworks two years ago. He went through over a dozen surgeries and has severe PTSD. His parents ended up divorced over the stress. Ask yourself, “Is it really worth the thrill for a few seconds or is safety more important?” He still complains that he doesn’t have “chi-chi’s” (nipples) and won’t wear anything except a long-sleeve shirt in public. Unfortunately, it took ten grafts for the skin to attach to his buttocks. He spent nine months in Parkland’s BICU on morphine. He couldn’t sit down for almost a year. He was only six and missed the entire first grade.
This concludes the parental lecture portion of the blog. I will continue on now….
Shotguns & Assault Rifles
A small-caliber gun, like a .22 rifle, will generally be quieter than a larger one, like a 12-gauge shotgun. They are both deadly and destructive for different reasons. Rifles and handguns generally shoot a single projectile unless they are loaded with buck or snake shot which are essentially smaller projectiles that are meant to scatter like a shotgun. The danger with a single shot, small caliber slug is that they have enough force to penetrate the body, but they don’t generally have enough to make an exit wound, so they bounce which creates a massive amount of destruction in the person’s body.
The smaller the gauge of the shotgun, the larger the bore (diameter) which means it can hold more powder and shoot with additional power. The additional powder equals force. Shotgun shells are made to spray in a formation. They scatter and the closer they are shot, the more destructive they are for this reason. They have more force and they are grouped more closely together since they spread with distance (If you have ever heard someone say, “they shoot straight from the hip, this is where it comes from). Whereas, a high-velocity assault rifle like a modified AR-15 that is fully automatic can pound out more than two dozen shots faster than you can count them in the moment. And, just to be clear, AR does not stand for assault rifle. It stands for the company that designed it in the 1950’s called ArmaLite. Don’t feel bad, I thought the same thing until my buddy laughed at me.
People often ask me about bump stocks since the tragedy in Las Vegas. They are extremely effective, deadly, killing devices that can be added to any semi-automatic rifle that essentially makes it an automatic. The bump stock uses the gun’s own firing power from the recoil to move forward, while resetting each round, allowing for a seamless shooting motion. They allow semi-automatic firearms to mimic fully automatic ones. They are cheap and easy to install. They are also highly controversial.
Car Backfire
An engine backfire occurs whenever the air-fuel mixture in a car combusts somewhere outside of the engine's cylinders. Small ones sound like a cough, gurgle, popcorn popping, or sputter, but the larger ones sound just like a gunshot. If you hear what sounds like a loud firecracker exploding under your hood or coming from the tailpipe you need to see the friendly neighborhood Mechanic as soon as possible. While it is usually just a poor air to fuel ratio, you may need to have a spark plug replaced and/or be risking damage to your engine while scaring the neighbors. You don’t want to end up like the guys below (see video) with Little Elm’s finest at your place on high alert.
Transformer Blowing
A transformer can fail for a variety of reasons, but the most common causes include lightning strikes, overloading, wear, corrosion, power surges, and moisture. Transformers contain mineral oil that acts as a coolant for the transformer. When there is too much current, the wiring can create additional heat, resulting in a spark that causes the fire. Then, the transformer will explode and we will lose power. The immediate danger is the fire and sparks on/from the pole. You need to make sure that the surrounding area has not caught fire since they can easily cause grass fires. My father was an Electrician and would occasionally see fires that were also spread by squirrels that were attempting to leave the scene. There is a danger that they can run the fire straight to your roof in an act of self-preservation.
You should check the area, keep the hose handy, call the power company to report the outage, and check on any neighbors that may need assistance. Please keep those that are older, alone, and/or home bound in mind as well since they may need additional assistance in an emergency.
Simply put, transformers are one of those things that are designed to break in order to keep us safe, but it can still be frightening and hazardous. Please remember that the transformer acts in a similar function as a fuse, breaker, or surge protector. It is better to have the issue stop outside of your home than come inside and wreak havoc. I will take several hours without power over a fire any day.
How To Gauge Distance
My favorite gun takes 9mm and maxes out at approximately 100 mph. It is a special issue that I think was made for me and the only good thing I got from my marriage to my ex-husband. A 9mm bullet travels around 1,500 feet per second. It will travel around 2,500 yards before it falls. However, the same gun with my custom loads will travel at a speed over 800 mph under optimal conditions and go over a mile because it can take two different types of shells. If a handgun can have that much force, imagine what a larger weapon can do. That’s a lot of destructive power and force.
It is extremely difficult for an untrained ear to gauge distance, so I encourage you to read more details in the Active Shooter Section below and watch the videos. It can be difficult for the most seasoned marksman. One thing that greatly assists in determination is having several people listening from different locations. Together, we are stronger.
In the next few months’ blog posts, we plan to cover hunting and active shooters. Please let us know if there is something that you would like to see covered or have a question about.
Videos Below
With your new knowledge, I challenge you to watch and LISTEN carefully to the first video. Then, I want you to apply your listening skills on the next two videos. The audio will still play if you bring up another tab, so you can launch the video in YouTube and click back here in the meantime. Then, start it over to see how well you did. You can even make it a family competition. Please post your results below.
I missed one on the second video. No one is perfect all of the time which is why having a community of people is imperative.
There is ADULT language in the first video. The presenter is also shot at in the video. These videos contain actual live gunfire and fireworks. If you are triggered by any of these things, or find them inappropriate, please do not watch the videos.
ADULT Language - Examples Of Gunfire
Fireworks Or Gunfire?
What Long Arms Sound Like At One Mile
Power Transformer Explosion - Advance To One Minute & Turn Up The Volume
Car Backfiring - Please Don’t Do This On Purpose (I would be upset too)
Bottle Rocket - This Is NOT A Safe Way To Shoot Them; However, The Sound Is Excellent
Unsafe Use of Black Cats With Good Sound
Professional Video That Shows The Force of Fireworks - The Audio Has Been Slowed Down
Excellent Example of How The Same Fireworks Sound In Different Sizes
