The sale of fireworks permits on O'ahu continued to grow yesterday as residents prepared to ring in 2006.

By yesterday afternoon, the city logged 12,226 permits sold, said Dennis Taga, satellite city hall division chief. That total was not final, however, as six of the 10 satellite city halls still had yet to report yesterday's sales.

A total of 12,662 New Year fireworks permits were sold on O'ahu last year, a five-year high.

O'ahu residents can still buy the $25 permits today at satellite city halls at Ala Moana Center, Pearlridge Shopping Center, Windward Mall and Hawai'i Kai Corporate Plaza from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fireworks may be set off from 9 p.m. tonight to 1 a.m. Jan. 1.

For those who don't plan to pop firecrackers at home, there are public midnight fireworks displays, including the Waikiki New Year's Fireworks Display off Waikiki Beach, and the Aloha Tower Marketplace's New Year's Eve Fireworks Extravaganza.

Honolulu Fire Department spokesman Capt. Kenison Tejada recommended that residents wet down their roofs and any brush areas surrounding their homes and said residents should also check around their homes for any stray fireworks tonight before going to bed.

"Monitor your house throughout the night," he said. "Even though you may be doing things safely your neighbor may not be as diligent."