Fireworks look fun, don’t they? But are fireworks safe?
Yellow, green, red explosions in the sky captivate the minds and hearts of millions each holiday weekend. As fun as they are to watch, fireworks can pose a great danger to you, your children, and your home. In what way? Let’s talk about that.
Fireworks are great for starting fires…
In fact, an average of 19,000 fires are started each year because of firecrackers. This comes out to an average of 32 million dollars of damage per year. As you can probably guess, many of these fires are started because of dry leaves, grass, bushes, garbage and dumpsters catching fire. This makes it easy for the fire to spread quickly to outdoor structures like sheds, gazebos, garages and vinyl siding on homes.
The sad news is that over 11,000 people are sent to the emergency room each year and up to 5 people die because of firework fires or injuries. Here’s the estimated breakdown:
- Hands and fingers (36 %)
- Head, face, and ears (19 %)
- Eyes (19 %)
- Legs (10 %)
- Arms (5 %)
The biggest day of the year for firework danger: July 4th
It is no surprise that 2 out of 5 of the all reported fires start on the 4th of July, with other major holidays like Memorial Day & Labor Day right behind.
Understand these fireworks safety tips & suggestions
- Remember that although fireworks may be legal in your area, they are still too dangerous to play with!
- Watch the firework displays set up by professionals at your local mall, stadium or city gathering.
- Watch the fireworks display on TV instead of doing it yourself.
- Did you know that the majority of fireworks injuries happen to children under the age of 14 years old? If you insist on using fireworks, remember to let adults use them so the children do not get hurt. Adult supervision can prevent many children from blowing off a finger or getting a head injury.
- Teach children to never pick up fireworks off of the ground as they still can explode.
- Have a water hose or water bucket on hand to put out any fires that might start.
- Did you know that sparklers can reach up to 1000 degrees Fahrenheit? Did you know that there are 1,400 emergency room injuries each year because of sparklers?
Fireworks are beautiful and fun to watch.
BUT, there lies a danger that few take the time to think about. A few seconds of fun can lead to burns that last a lifetime. Fireworks accidents and fires occur so fast that you don’t have time to protect yourself or your home. We want you to enjoy yourself safely, so pay attention to these fireworks safety tips! Your friends here at InsuranceHub are standing by to answer all of your questions about fire coverage within your homeowner’s policy.
Give us a call and we will do our best to answer your questions.
