If you play with fireworks this Fourth of July, the only fanciful light show you see may well emanate from the top of a police car.

Representatives of the Coastside’s law enforcement community say they will have zero tolerance for illegal fireworks this year. While they issue similar warnings every year, this year is clearly different. The risk of wildfire sparked by errant fireworks has rarely been higher as tinder-dry conditions and countless current fires across California have stretched the state’s resources thin.

Coastside law enforcement officials met last week to discuss the intersection of fire danger and the Fourth of July. “You can’t turn on the TV without hearing about the fires,” said Half Moon Bay Police Sgt. Mark Reed. To make sure fires aren’t sparked closer to home, Reed said all of the city’s sworn officers will be on duty July 4.

Reed said there are no permissible fireworks on the coast — and that includes the so-called “safe and sane” kind sold in Pacifica and San Bruno. Possession of most fireworks can be considered a misdemeanor with minimum fines of $500. And the big boomers can land would-be celebrants in jail.

“The M-80s and M-100s, those are considered explosives,” he said. “Possession of those is a felony and that means state jail time.”

Of course, the approved show is set for just after dark at Pillar Point Harbor. Reed said every precaution has been made to keep that show safe. But he says officers will be spreading out through El Granada, Princeton and the harbor to assure that the only show in town is left to the professionals.

“What we’re concerned with is people bringing their own stuff,” he said.