HELOTES, Texas -- With drought conditions prompting South Texas counties into fireworks bans, area law enforcement are cracking down on people who possess fireworks illegally, including Helotes police.

A 1987 ordinance makes it illegal to possess fireworks within the city limits of Helotes, but people who purchase their fireworks at vendors outside the city limits are finding a start difference once they pull onto the highway.

Since 2007, a stretch of Highway 16 past the city limit markers was annexed into the Helotes city limits, but the fireworks vendors currently set up off the roadway are outside the city limits. The highway prevents people who purchased fireworks legally from transporting them outside the city limits, and Helotes police have been cracking down.

"The fireworks stand (previous to 2007) would tell people to turn left and go outside our city," Helotes Police Chief Morton Ault said. "They're (going to) get a ticket as soon as they pull onto the street."

One man said he believes fireworks vendors are not being up front with their customers, considering he made a large purchase at one of the stands and was immediately stopped and ticketed after pulling onto the highway.

"A person like myself, or any other buyer, is going to come out on the short end of the stick, and we're paying for it," Spencer Bradshaw said.

Bradshaw purchased about $200 worth of fireworks earlier this week, only to be stopped, given a citation with a fine up to $200 and had his fireworks confiscated.

A spokesman for Alamo Fireworks said vendors are now telling customers to drive away from Helotes and find a safe zone to light their fireworks, but Ault said that's still no guarantee customers won't be cited if they're caught on Highway 16.