During New Year and the Fourth of July holiday people often celebrate with fireworks, but if used improperly fireworks can cause serious injury or burns. To ensure a safe holiday the Alabama Department of Public Health recommends that parents protect children from injury by preventing them from using fireworks and leaving it to the professionals.
According to the National SAFE KIDS Campaign almost 5,000 children ages 14 and under are treated in the emergency room for fireworks-related injuries each year. Sixty-five percent of these injuries occur during the month surrounding the Fourth of July.
The safest way to enjoy a fireworks display is at a community-sanctioned, licensed event. Alabama law allows only consumer fireworks, formerly known as class C fireworks. Some municipalities (including Montgomery) outlaw fireworks altogether. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission prevents large numbers of hazardous fireworks from reaching consumers. Illegal mail order kits contain chemical mixtures that can explode unexpectedly and violently. M-80s, cherry bombs and quarter sticks are so highly explosive that they have been banned by federal law since 1966. Working with the U.S. Customs Service since 1988, CPSC has seized or detained more than 400 million hazardous fireworks at docks across the country.
If fireworks are legal where you live and you decide to set them off on your own, be sure to follow these important safety tips:
• Never allow children to play with or ignite fireworks.
• Read and follow all warnings and instructions.
• Discuss safety procedures with children, including teaching them to “stop, drop and roll.”
• Be sure other people are out of range before lighting fireworks.
• Never aim or throw fireworks at another person.
• Only light fireworks on a smooth, flat surface away from the house, dry leaves and flammable materials.
• Never try to relight fireworks that have not fully functioned.
• Keep a bucket of water nearby in case of a malfunction or fire.
