Firework Safety Tips to Know Before you Light Up

The fourth of July is always a memorable time, as long as it's memorable for the right reasons.  According to the fireworks annual report in 2009 nearly 9 thousand people went to the emergency room for fireworks related injuries.  That number is up from 2008 when only 7 thousand people were injured.
So before you light 'em up, here are some things to remember.

Troy Green is with the state fire marshal's office and he said, "Make sure that whenever you light the fireworks you need to be in a clear area, not anywhere close to buildings and children should not handle fireworks by themselves unsupervised.

Green says to also look out for sparklers.

Green said, "Sparklers are very dangerous also because they omit a really intense flame and children can be injured, burning themselves.

Green says don't forget to use common sense either.

"If you throw it at someone and it lands on their clothes they can also get burned."

And that could land you behind bars.

"Or even worse you can get injured, think of this tomato down here as your limb, your arm, your leg or even worse your head.  Now here's what can happen if you're not careful when playing with fireworks.

Lets see that one more time in slow motion.  Green says make sure this staged explosion doesn't happen to you.

And then...

Green said, "Be safe and have a happy fourth of July."