Fireworks Safety
Boulder County provides safety tips for individuals who plan to light fireworks this Fourth of July.
Although colorful and exciting to watch, fireworks can be extremely dangerous if improperly handled. They can cause serious burns and eye injuries, including blindness or loss of limbs and property damage due to fires.
Therese Pilonetti, a program manager with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's Consumer Protection Division, said, "It is not uncommon to hear of someone's roof catching fire, or trees and bushes around the house being ignited because someone improperly handled fireworks.
Pilonetti recommended that families attend one of the many professional fireworks displays being held in the Denver metropolitan area and throughout the state instead of having their own displays. However, individuals who do plan to purchase and ignite legal, permissible fireworks were advised to take the following precautions:
* Read and follow all warnings and instructions on fireworks labels.
* Discuss the safe handling of fireworks with children several times before the holiday.
* Supervise older children constantly while they are using fireworks.
* Never allow young children to set off fireworks. Young children will often become very excited around fireworks causing them to mishandle or drop the fireworks.
* Purchase only those fireworks that are legal to light in the area and that are in sound condition. Inspect fireworks for signs of powder leaking, age or moisture exposure.
* Check with your local police or fire department to determine local fireworks ordinances and permissible uses of consumer fireworks.
* Never ignite fireworks in glass or metal containers. Flying glass and metal can cause serious injuries to onlookers.
* Make certain other people are out of range before lighting fireworks, and never point them or throw them at another person.
* Only light fireworks on a smooth, flat surface away from houses, dry leaves and flammable materials.
* Never try to relight fireworks that have not fully functioned.
* Keep a bucket of water handy in case of a malfunction or fire.
Pilonetti said that even though state law prohibits the purchase or sale of illegal fireworks, fire inspectors have been able in past years to confiscate these fireworks being sold at locations throughout Colorado.
The most common illegal fireworks sold in the state are pop bottle rockets and firecrackers.
Banned Fireworks
In Colorado, Bailey explained, many fireworks are illegal including those that emit projectiles or fly into the air and those with a loud bang. Banned fireworks include such things as:
* pop bottle rockets
* firecrackers
* cherry bombs
* roman candles
* M-80 salutes
* large reloadable shells
* aerial bombs
* mail order kits designed to make these fireworks (homemade fireworks are extremely dangerous and should never be used)
LEGAL FIREWORKS
Legal fireworks include non-explosive fireworks that are not intended to leave the ground.
They include:
* sparklers
* fountains
* ground spinners
* novelties, such as party poppers