Every single year for the last 20 years I've been in situations where I've observed people, like, lots of different people over time, exhibit a variety of unsafe firework behavior. This can be from people not knowing what to do or being ill-informed, or it can just come from not thinking.
Fireworks have a reputation for being extremely dangerous, but 98% of the danger comes from people not thinking and not following the rules.
If you like to do fireworks or are planning on at some point doing fireworks, PLEASE read, it could save a life. Every single one of these rules on the list are rules I've seen people break.
Follow the directions on the fireworks.
Read the directions to make sure you are lighting the correct part of the firework.
Don't set a firework on an unstable or bumpy or curved surface, like grass. It will say this on the directions.
Don't place any part of your body over or in front of the business end of the firework while lighting it.
Know what your fireworks do in order to determine how far away to stand and how far away to take them.
Any firework that you don't know what it does should be lit at least 20 feet away from any people or notable flammable objects and after you light it you should quickly run at least 20 feet away.
The correct distance from a large firework such as a mortar is at LEAST 20 feet, in order to protect your hearing but also to protect you in case the tube explodes or something else goes wrong.
After you light the firework, you should quickly run at least 20 feet away.
You can weight or nail down fireworks tubes for maximum safety.
If a firework fails to detonate, wait at least 3-5 minutes before you approach it or move it. Do not place any part of your body in front of the business end.
If a firework fails to detonate after lighting, never attempt to re-light it without the fuse.
If a fuse comes off before lighting, don't attempt to light it without the fuse unless you are very sure it's not of an explosive nature.
If any firework stops discharging early, do not assume it is finished until 3-5 minutes have passed.
Do not look into the tube or attempt to fish the mortar out of the tube if it fails to discharge.
Don't stand too close to spinning fireworks, you don't know where they will go. Don't light bees in your hand.
Don't use anything as a firing tube not designed specifically for this purpose.
Don't do anything stupid with a mortar like try to blow up objects with it.
Don't throw dead sparklers into dry grass.
Create a safe place such as a sand bucket or water bucket or just isolated pavement corner to throw smoldering objects, and make sure that is where you place all your smoldering objects.
Don't kick things that are on fire or have recently been on fire with your shoe. Don't pick up things that have recently been on fire with your hands.
Don't try to catch falling debris unless it is a parachute or something else designed to be caught. It may be very hot and you can get serious burns.
The packaging will say don't hold a roman candle in your hand, but we all know you won't listen to that, so here's how to do it safely:
Hold the candle at or above chest height as far away from you as possible. The business end should be pointed up at a 45-80 degree angle (higher than 45 degrees but not straight up).
Do not point the candle at anyone or anything. This should go without saying, and yet.
Light the end that says to light it. Hold it closer to the non lit end.
Hold the candle off to the side so that the butt end is not pointed at your body. It is possible for manufacturing defects to make the candle discharge out the back and you don't want to get hit in the stomach with a flaming ball of fire.
Don't let anyone else stand behind you in such a manner that they are behind the butt end of the candle either.
When the candle stops discharging, do not assume is it finished just because there is a delay. Wait 30 seconds to 1 minute before pointing the candle downwards or at anything and at least 2 minutes before assuming it is dead.
Make sure kids below a responsible age don't have unsupervised access to lighters or fire. There are literally piles of explosives lying around everywhere.
Really think carefully about the steps you are taking to prevent the lighters from falling into the hands of children. It might be in your back pocket, but do your kids feel comfortable taking things out of your back pocket?
Supervision means that you also make them follow the rules of safety, not that you stand there and watch them do unsafe sh*t. This should go without saying.
Have fun!! I know 4th of July is over this year but there's always next year.
titsay
kianamaiart
jacobvanloon
jbbartram-illu
baratheonpilled
2087
snowghoul
theartofmadeline
germansingergirl
