According to Daniel Guzman, M.D., a pediatric emergency medicine physician with Cook Children’s Health Care System, children are treated in emergency departments every year for fireworks-related injuries, including burns, eye trauma and hand injuries. While many families associate these injuries with the person lighting the fireworks, children and other bystanders can also be at risk.

Although fireworks are a beloved Fourt of July tradition, Cook Children’s Health Care System, encourages families to celebrate safely and understand the risks fireworks can pose to children.

What type of fireworks injuries do children often experience?

Fireworks can cause serious injuries in a matter of seconds. Even legal consumer fireworks can burn at temperatures high enough to cause severe skin damage.

Some of the most common fireworks-related injuries include:

• Burns to the hands, fingers and face
• Eye injuries that can threaten vision
• Cuts and lacerations
• Hearing damage from loud explosions
• Falls or other injuries while running away from fireworks

Sparklers aren’t as safe as they seem

Sparklers are often considered a safer option for young children, but they can be surprisingly dangerous.

 “Many parents feel that sparklers are safe because they don’t explode, however, the risk for burns is significant because they can reach 2000˚F (1093˚C) which is hot enough to melt some metals and cause severe burns.” said Dr. Guzman.

 Young children may accidentally touch the hot wire, wave sparklers near others, or drop them onto bare feet. Using glow sticks instead of sparklers is a safer, brighter, and more fun way to celebrate.

Fireworks safety tips for families

The safest way for children to enjoy fireworks is by attending a professional public display rather than using fireworks at home according to Dr. Guzman.

If your family chooses to use legal consumer fireworks, help reduce the risk by following these safety tips:

• Never allow young children to handle or light fireworks.
• Keep children and pets a safe distance away from fireworks.
• Ensure a sober adult supervises all fireworks.
• Read and follow all instructions on the packaging.
• Never relight a firework that doesn’t ignite properly.
• Keep a bucket of water or a garden hose nearby.
• Never point or throw fireworks toward another person or pet.
• Never carry fireworks in your pocket.
• Soak used fireworks in water before throwing them away.
• Avoid homemade or illegal fireworks.

What should you do if a child is injured?

If a child is burned by fireworks, move them away from the source of the injury. Cool the burn with cool water as soon as possible, remove clothing from the burned areas and apply a gauze bandage or clean, soft cloth. Seek medical care attention right away, especially for burns involving the face, hands, feet, joints or large areas of skin.

If a child has an eye injury, “do not rub the eye or attempt to wash it out; call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department,” said Dr. Guzman.

Other Fourth of July safety reminders

Fireworks aren’t the only risk during Independence Day celebrations. Parents can also help keep children safe by:

• Never leaving children unattended near pools, lakes or other bodies of water.
• Making sure children wear properly fitted life jackets when appropriate.
• Keeping kids hydrated, especially during extreme heat.
• Taking frequent breaks from outdoor activities.
• Applying and reapplying sunscreen throughout the day.
• Grilling outdoors only, keeping children at least 3 feet away from hot grills.
• Keeping matches, lighters and lighter fluid out of children’s reach.

The safest celebration is a prepared one

The Fourth of July should be remembered for time with family, not a trip to the emergency department. Choosing professional fireworks displays, supervising children and practicing simple safety precautions can help families enjoy a fun and memorable holiday while reducing the risk of serious injuries.

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We’ll start with her lungs. Our pulmonologist has us taking her off oxygen while we’re at home and just seeing how long she can maintain her oxygen saturation levels. Our record so far is eight hours without oxygen, which is very exciting for us! When we first came home, she could barely go five minutes. We see Avery’s pulmonologist tomorrow and I’m hoping he’s pleased with her progress. One hour at a time is our mantra! It would be great to be off by her second birthday. But by now, I should know better than to make statements like that.

Onto her heart. As we wean off the oxygen, we’ll have to watch her pulmonary hypertension and make sure it doesn’t put any added stress on her heart. The hope is that as her lungs get better so will her heart and we can wean her off her medication.

Next up is her tummy. I’m happy to report that her reflux is much better and we’re down to her throwing up just 1-2 times a week (HUGE improvement!). And she’s finally starting to gain some weight. But, between having a tube down her throat for her first three months of life and severe reflux, she isn’t the biggest fan of eating.

That leads us to the three T's – physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy - which Avery receives weekly. In speech therapy, we are working on her speech and her eating. I’m happy to report that she’s making big improvements in both. She’s babbling lots and we’re down to using her G- button once a day (down from six)!

For OT, we’re working on things like stacking boxes, putting things in containers and clapping. This is one of those areas where it’s tough for us to tell the difference between what Avery can and can’t do and what she WON’T do. Man, she has such a strong personality already!

We’ve probably made the biggest improvement with her gross motor skills (PT). She’s officially walking! But, she turns her left leg and foot out a little too much because of some weakness in her hip and quads so we’re in the process of getting her fitted for orthotics ... Nothing is ever easy.

Finally, her “emotional” development …Gone are the days in the NICU of five people in a room trying to coax just the tiniest smile out of her. Fast forward a year and we’ve got this fiery little 19 month old who walks around the room like she owns the place, blowing raspberries, “talking” and chasing after our kitties.

Avery Leigh Wooley, we are SO proud to be your parents and can’t wait to see what the next year has in store for you!

Avery's Journey:

• Avery's story - part 1
• Avery's story - part 2
• Avery's story - part 3
• Avery's story - part 4
• Avery's story - part 5
• Avery's journey - part 6
• Avery's journey - part 7
• Avery's journey - part 8
• Avery's journey - part 9

About the author

Kelly Wooley is a Marketing specialist at Cook Children’s. She is writing a series of blogs chronicling the birth of her daughter Avery and their time spent in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

The Emergency Department at Cook Children’s sees eye and face injuries from projectiles (fireworks that launch or that have parts that explode off), hand and finger injuries from holding items while they explode and burns of every type, especially when children are running around barefoot.

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)’s annual death and injury report on fireworks incidents indicates that nearly half of these injuries occurred to children younger than 15 years of age. The culprits? Firecrackers, bottle rockets and sparklers – yes, sparklers.

Sparklers are considered by many to be the “safe” firework. But even an innocent looking sparkler can get as hot as the flame on some blow torches and can easily ignite clothing?

“Every firework has its dangers and there simply isn’t one that I would consider completely safe,” said Justin Smith, M.D., a pediatrician in Lewisville. “Parents would be safest to take their children to an event and watch fireworks. You will have a good time and can view from a distance.”

Remind your friends and neighbors, before they touch a flame to any fireworks, to make sure it’s legal to do so where they live.

Prevent the Tragedies

If fireworks can be used legally where you live and you do want to use them, here are a few guidelines CPSC recommends they follow:

1. Never allow young children to play with or ignite fireworks. Adults should always supervise fireworks activities.
2. Never try to re-light or pick up fireworks that fizzle and don’t go off.
3. Never point or throw fireworks at another person.
4. Keep a bucket of water or a garden hose handy in case of fire or other mishap. After fireworks fully complete their functioning, douse the spent device with plenty of water from a bucket or hose before discarding to prevent a fire.

More guidelines are at CPSC’s Fireworks Information Center.