Consumer Fireworks Are Dangerous, NFPA Reminds
The association's fireworks page includes videos, a report, fact sheet, and statistics about the thousands of injuries recorded every year around the Fourth of July.
Fun on the Fourth of July can turn seriously hazardous, the National Fire Protection Association reminds us in its annual alert about the dangers of consumer fireworks. NFPA urges Americans not to use consumer fireworks and to prevent children from picking up fireworks that may be left over, because those fireworks may still be active.
The agency's fireworks page includes videos, a report, fact sheet, statistics about injuries, and audio files in which Lorraine Carli, NFPA's vice president of communication, discusses consumer fireworks.
The statistics show that thousands of people per year, most often children and teenagers, are injured while using consumer fireworks. Yet few people understand their risks, which include burns and other injuries (an estimated 9,800 injuries treated in U.S. hospitals' emergency rooms in 2007) and fires (an estimated 32,600 reported fires in 2006). NFPA coordinates the Alliance to Stop Consumer Fireworks, which asks the public to avoid the use of consumer fireworks and instead enjoy fireworks performances by trained professionals.