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Ways to Stay Safe with Fireworks this Fourth of July

The Fourth of July is only one week away, and more and more individuals are purchasing fireworks to use with their families to celebrate this holiday. Fireworks can be great fun, but they can also be extremely dangerous. The National Fire Protection Agency reports that more than 8,500 Americans went to emergency rooms with firework-related injuries in the year 2010. Research shows that about 80% of all of those injuries happened with fireworks that were approved for consumer use. This means that individuals were not acting recklessly or using illegal explosives, they were just trying to have a good time with friends and family when something went terribly wrong.

The safest way to watch the fireworks on Independence Day is to go a public fireworks display that is put on by professionals. If you opt to create your own fireworks show, then you will want to keep these safety tips in mind to reduce the possibility of a tragic accident. The first way to make sure that your Fourth of July is injury free is to buy legal fireworks. Don't go to a shady dealer who sells his explosives for cheap. Also, don't buy any devices that are sold in plain paper wrappings. Oftentimes these are unpredictable and cause serious accidents.

Also, you should be prepared for the possibility of a firework accident. In order to do this, you will want to have a garden hose turned on and ready for use in the event of an emergency and have a bucket of water nearby to douse any flames. It is also very important that all fireworks users stand back from their explosives after they are lit. Don't ever place nay part of your body right over the fuse, and only light one fuse at a time. Also, safety advocates say that individuals need to be aware of the dangers of sparklers. They burn at over 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit and the flames can spark off, landing in a person's hair, on their clothing, or in their eyes. Sparklers cause many individuals eye damage each year because the chemicals used to ignite the flame can deteriorate eye tissue.

If you set off a firework and it never goes off, leave it undisturbed for 20 minutes to make sure that it is not just taking it's time. If the firework never ignites, then you will want to soak it in water for 30 minutes and then discard it. This is important, because duds may catch fire later at an expected time if they are not treated right. You should never try to relight a firework that did not go off the first time.

It is also essential that celebrators store their fireworks safely. Never store the fireworks near any flammable materials or near an area where there could be flames present or at a place where there is a fire hazard. Also, never store fireworks near a heater or any appliance that gives off heat that could somehow ignite the rockets. When you set off fireworks, try to do so in an open area without any trees, dry grass or leaves. These items can catch fire easily. Also, you should designate an individual to ignite your fireworks.

Make sure that this person doesn't drink any alcohol when performing this job, and that he or she wears safety goggles. Also, it is important that you obey all local laws when shooting off fireworks this year. Some states do not allow fireworks at all, and some cities have their own local bans on explosives. If you are injured in a firework accident that was not your fault, then you need to hire a Seattle personal injury lawyer at Law Offices of J.D. Smith, PLLC to help you out. With the right lawyer on your side, you will be able to tackle your case!

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