FIREWORKS SAFETY

During the summer and in particular, July 4^th, many children and adults are excited to watch fireworks displays.  That is the key: watching them, not setting them off.  There are reasons why in New Jersey and New York all consumer fireworks are illegal.

Fireworks can cause severe burns, leading to scarring and disfigurement for life. They can also lead to loss of fingers and or hands and to blindness from eye injuries.  They can even be fatal.  Even those types of fireworks considered by many to be safe, such as sparklers, can cause minor burns, corneal abrasions and even serious burns, caused by clothing catching on fire from the extremely hot tips (can be 1800 degrees Fahrenheit).  Bottle rockets are another type of fireworks commonly used at home; they often cause eye injuries, including those leading to permanent blindness or even enucleation (loss of the eye).

Another significant consequence of home use of fireworks is property damage (by the fires which can be caused by igniting fireworks).

Some of the causes of injuries included delayed or early fireworks explosions, errant flight paths of rockets, debris from aerial fireworks and mishandling of sparklers.

We and the AAP therefore recommend attending community fireworks displays, which are run by professionals.



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