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For those of you tempted to ignite aerial fireworks as part of your Independence Day celebration, we offer four good reasons to reconsider.
1. It’s illegal. Pennsylvania law forbids anyone without a display permit issued by a municipality from launching fireworks. Translation: no bottle rockets, Roman candles, fire crackers, silver salutes, mortars and other powder-filled products that go ka-pow!
You can, of course, purchase legal options for your backyard festivities. They include, according to the state police’s Web page regarding fireworks, “ground and hand-held sparkling devices,” “toy caps” and “novelties,” as defined by the American Pyrotechnics Association.
Even so, many child-safety advocates and others suggest that you skip the self-lit sparkler exhibitions entirely and instead attend a sanctioned community fireworks display. You can get your ooh– and ahh-filled moments at public shows such as Wilkes-Barre’s annual extravaganza in Kirby Park. The city’s event is set for Monday evening.
2. You might lose a finger. Or an eye. Or your hearing. As evidence, we could direct you to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s fireworks-related chart depicting the “most injured body parts.” Hands and fingers account for 36 percent of injuries, primarily burns, according to the commission, which created the hashtag “FireworksHurt.”
Or we simply could remind you of the mishaps incurred last July 4 by two players in the National Football League. In separate incidents involving fireworks, the pair lost a total of three fingers.
Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul returned to the game despite his severely maimed right hand; the other player retired.
3. Your fireworks’ blasts potentially pose a nuisance – or worse – for people in the neighborhood, including combat veterans.
Individuals coping with post-traumatic stress disorder might find your Fourth of July tradition unnerving. That’s especially true if the pops, whistles and bangs occur unexpectedly in the days, or weeks, surrounding the actual holiday. Phantom Fireworks, based in Youngstown, Ohio, sent a letter to customers and others, asking them to be sensitive to the situation. The company “suggests that those who intend to shoot consumer fireworks in a neighborhood should contact their neighbors to let them know what they plan to do,” according to the letter.
A nonprofit in Evansville, Indiana, started an “Explosion of Kindness” campaign to alert more people to the effects of fireworks on certain veterans. The group provides vets with yard signs that read: “Combat veteran lives here. Please be courteous with fireworks.” For information, visit militarywithptsd.org.
4. It bears repeating: It’s illegal.
Violators of the state’s fireworks law risk having their merchandise confiscated and getting hit with a fine. Why spoil an otherwise spectacular holiday? Leave the pyrotechnics to the pros.