Whether it is New Year’s celebrations or the 4th of July – once the sun sets, bright flashes of color will light up the sky. Sitting in the audience is the best place to be to stay injury-free. The US CPSC (Consumer Product Safety Commission) reports there were approximately 10,200 injuries and 11 deaths related to fireworks in 2022. The US CPSC collects data about fireworks sold in the US. Surprisingly, nearly half of the fireworks tested recently had – illegal fuses, banned chemicals, and unlawful amounts of pyrotechnic materials.
Don’t become a statistic! Palm Beach County Fire Rescue urges everyone: LEAVE IT TO THE PROS – GO SEE A SHOW! Check your local areas for professional fireworks displays.
If a show is not in your plans- REMEMBER THE RISKS and please follow these safety guidelines.
Preparation
- Keep a metal bucket of water or water hose ON and ready to soak duds (fireworks that don’t fully light).
Only use fireworks labelled “emits showers of sparks” or “consumer fireworks”.
Pets can get scared. Keep them indoors and drown out loud noises with a TV show or music.
Drink non-alcoholic beverages only. Alcohol slows reaction time and causes poor judgement.
Keep lighters, matches, and fireworks away from young children to avoid burn injuries.
Avoid fireworks wrapped in brown paper packaging or product labelled “professional”. These should only be used by trained pyrotechnic professionals.
Fireworks Ignition
- Stay on concrete or pavement. Dry grass can burn easily.
Fireworks are UNPREDICTABLE! Keep your unused fireworks in a fire-resistant metal bucket or container and far away from the ignition area. If a burning firework suddenly flies sideways while it is lit, it is less likely to catch fire to the rest of the batch.
Designate ONE person and light ONE at a time. Everyone else should watch as far away as possible or indoors through a window.
Before throwing fireworks away, soak them with water to prevent a fire.
If it does not fully ignite, DO NOT touch or re-light. It may burn uncontrollably or explode. Soak with water instead.
Quickly move away after it is lit.
Avoid injuries and property damage. Place, point, and light fireworks AWAY from people, pets, homes, and vehicles.
When lighting a fuse, extend arms far away from the body and keep head away from the fireworks path. This includes sparklers which burn up to 2,000° degrees Fahrenheit – hot enough to melt metal.
Wear long pants and closed-toed shoes.
The safest choice is to use glow sticks and crafts for young children, leaving the fireworks to the pros. The safest advice? Go see a show!