Every year, important messages about fireworks are ignored by thousands of people, and often, the result is an unhappy ending. Burns and the scars they leave can last a lifetime. Children are most often those who are injured or killed.
Fireworks PSA Web from mysafela.org
Fireworks are fun to watch and represent our country’s independence. MySafe:LA and our partners at the Los Angeles Fire Department and Los Angeles Police Department believe that on Independence Day in California, it’s best to leave the fireworks shows to the professionals. Here are a few reasons why:
ALL fireworks are ILLEGAL in the City of Los Angeles.
It doesn’t matter if you found them on the Internet, in a neighboring city, if they were a gift from a friend… All fireworks are illegal in Los Angeles. M80s are illegal. Rockets and Roman Candles are illegal. Sparklers are illegal.
There are two key reasons why ALL fireworks are illegal:
- Fireworks kill and injure people, often children
- Fireworks are the cause of thousands of fires, destroying property and vehicles every year
Purchasing, selling, or detonating fireworks is illegal in many cities throughout California.
While fireworks are illegal in most cities, other surrounding cities and unincorporated county areas often allow the sale of so-called “Safe and Sane” fireworks. People can simply drive to a neighboring area, and purchase these explosive devices. They then bring them back into the city where fireworks are illegal, and stage their own pyrotechnics show. As we’ve reported, the results can be damaging, and even deadly. Many cities are making the possession of fireworks illegal, resulting in possible jail time and fines up to $50,000.00.
If you purchase fireworks in a city that permits the sale, then bring them into Los Angeles, you’re breaking the law.
If you give anyone under the age of 16 fireworks of any type (including but not limited to Sparklers or Poppers or Snakes), you’re breaking the law.
There’s no such thing as “Safe and Sane” fireworks in the hands of amateurs.
“Safe and Sane” is a marketing theme. These burning and hot devices are neither safe nor sane. A pot of boiling water boils at 212 degrees Farenheit. Would you put your hand in a pot of boiling water? A hand-held “sparkler” burns between 1200 and 1800 degrees Farenheit, throwing off metallic sparks and embers.
Note that even “safe and sane” fireworks require registration with the Office of the California State Fire Marshal, and the devices labelled as such don’t fly or explode. Still, in nearly every class taught by MySafe:LA this year, at least 10 students (out of an average of 77 per class) noted they had been injured by safe and sane fireworks in the past.
People get injured and even die EVERY YEAR using fireworks.
According to a US Consumer Products Safety Study, CPSC staff received reports of 9 nonoccupational fireworks-related deaths occurring in 10 incidents during 2014.
Four victims died in house fires caused by fireworks, including two where the persons killed were not the “starters.”
Seven victims died as a direct result of exposure to heat and/or blast impacts.
Finally, fireworks were involved in an estimated 10,500 injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments during calendar year 2014.
Kids are often the victims of fireworks injuries.
Each year, from June 20 to July 20, an average of 230 people go to the emergency room for fireworks-related injuries EVERY DAY. Statistics from the CSPC show that nearly half of the these injuries happen to kids under the age of 16.
Don’t let your children or family members become a statistic!
Find a FREE professional show near you.
Finding a professional fireworks show is easy. Simply follow one of the links below to find a listing of fireworks shows near you. Note that this year, there are shows on the weekend prior to the 4th of July (which falls on a Wednesday), on the holiday itself, and even on the weekend following:
Los Angeles Fire Department fireworks listing
MySafe:LA fireworks listing (and interactive map, including the date)
