Fourth of July Safety Tips: Just Say "NO" to At-Home Fireworks

Lisa Holt, RN, MS — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 11:35:06 +0000

Many families have traditions of lighting fireworks in their backyards, even handing lit sparklers to toddlers as they run in dizzying circles in the yard. This is a safety disaster waiting to happen and a practice that needs to be abandoned. Leave lighting fireworks to the professionals this year! Take your family out to see a public firework display as a safer alternative to lighting fireworks at home.

Fireworks are dangerous!

The National Council on Fireworks Safety reports that every year nearly 10,000 people are treated for injuries related to at-home fireworks. It is estimated that as many as 45-50% of those injured are children.

Never use homemade or illegal fireworks – their use accounts for 30-35% of all firework related injuries!

Never allow a child to play with or light fireworks – even sparklers! Sparklers get very hot: over 1800*F! That’s hot enough to melt gold! They are simply not safe, especially in the hands of a child. Six states have already banned all consumer fireworks, including sparklers.

Try offering glowsticks as a safer, non-toxic alternative to sparklers this year. If you have a budding scientist in your house, you can even incorporate a science lesson on chemiluminescence (the science behind why glowsticks glow)!
Older kids (grown ups too!) might enjoying chewing on wintergreen candies in the dark and watching each other to see the resulting blue sparks. Your budding scientist can tell everyone about triboluminescence!

The American Academy of Pediatrics states that “people should take their children to organized public displays of fireworks instead of risking injury or death with at-home fireworks.” Join your neighbors and friends this year at one of these great events:

Fourth of July Celebration in Sanford,
Red, Hot, and Boom in Altamonte Springs,
Fireworks at the Fountain at Lake Eola in Orlando,
or the Independence Day Fireworks Displays at Disney World. Disney World has gone “green” with their fireworks displays – they now use compressed air instead of gunpowder to launch their fireworks!

Fireworks terrify animals!

Here’s another reason to abandon the tradition of at-home fireworks – they terrify animals. Pets are not allowed at public firework displays and for good reason. The sudden and very loud explosions are very damaging to our pets’ sensitive ears. Animal shelters report a surge in lost pets during fireworks season as petrified animals flee for safety.

Keep your pets inside in case your neighbors decide to set off fireworks.
Turn on some soothing music inside the house and dim the lights to help reduce your pets’ anxiety level.
Make sure that your pets’ ID tags have current contact information in case they run away.
Do not bring your pets to a public fireworks display.

Fireworks are a threat to wildlife and the environment!

Even though public firework displays are a better option than at-home fireworks, many environmentalists argue that traditional gunpowder fueled fireworks displays are damaging to our health, wildlife, and the environment.

heavy metals are used in fireworks to produce the brilliant colors and can contaminate the water supply
physical debris from fireworks litters the ground and bodies of water
wildlife can eat the debris or become entangled in the remains of expended fireworks
wildlife become frightened and frenzied during fireworks displays just like our companion pets

Alternatives to traditional gunpowder fueled fireworks displays do exist.

Disney World now uses only compressed air in their displays,
laser light shows are far less environmentally toxic,
and nothing beats a good parade.

Have a lot of fun celebrating this Independence Day while keeping your family safe. If your family tradition has included at-home fireworks in past years, let this year be the start of a new, safer tradition!

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Fourth of July Safety Tips: Just Say "NO" to At-Home Fireworks