Fireworks are often used to mark special events and holidays such as July 4th. Unfortunately, fireworks cause thousands of injuries each year. The only safe way to view fireworks is to attend a professional show. If this isn’t an option, here are a few safety tips to keep in mind:
- Only use Minnesota-legal fireworks like sparklers, fountains, ground spinners and snappers.
- Point fireworks away from people and animals.
- Use fireworks in an open area away from trees and houses.
- Extinguish and dispose of spent fireworks in a bucket of water. Do not try to relight a dud.
Fireworks Facts
- More than 19,500 reported fires are started by fireworks annually.
- Burns account for 44 percent of the 9,100 injuries treated in emergency rooms seen in the month around July 4th.
- Half of the fireworks injuries seen at emergency rooms were extremities: hands, fingers, or legs. One-third were to the eye or other parts of the head.
- Children ages 10 through 14 had the highest rate of fireworks injury with more than one-third of the victims of fireworks injuries under age 15.
- Sparklers account for roughly one-quarter of emergency room fireworks injuries.
Reproduced from National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) website, www.nfpa.org/publiceducation. © NFPA