U.S. Fire Administration

TOPICAL FIRE RESEARCH SERIES

Volume 1, Issue 7

January 2001 (Rev. December 2001)

The Dangers of Fireworks

FINDINGS

S Fireworks were the cause of 13 fatalities, 8,500 injuries, 7,000 fires,

and $40 million in property loss in 1998.

S State laws regulating the sale of fireworks have a direct impact on the

incidence of loss. More stringent laws have been responsible for a decrease in injuries in the last decade—from a high of 12,100 in 1990 to

a low of 7,800 in 1996.

S 70-75% of fireworks injuries occur during a 30-day period (June

23-July 23). In addition to Independence Day, other peak periods for

injuries are New Year’s Eve and other holidays.

S 45% of fireworks injuries are to children under the age of 15. Males are

three times more likely than females to be injured.

Fireworks are enjoyable and exciting to watch, but each year they injure thousands

of people, many of them children, and cause thousands of fires. Federal and state laws

prohibit the sale of certain types of fireworks, but even those that are legal can be dangerous. For example, sparklers, which are legal in the majority of states, burn at temperatures of approximately 2,000�F.1

To prevent injuries and property loss from fireworks, the federal government has

banned the sale of the most dangerous types (Class B fireworks). These include M–80s,

cherry bombs, firecrackers containing more than 50 milligrams of black powder, and

mail order kits for building fireworks.

Working with the U.S. Customs Office, the Consumer Product Safety Commission

has seized nearly 400 million pounds of illegal fireworks at U.S. docks since 1988.2

Federal, state, and local laws govern the manufacture and sale of legal fireworks

(Class C).

3 Thirty-three states and the District of Columbia allow some or all types of

consumer fireworks. Nevada has no fireworks laws except at the county levels. Six states

allow only sparklers or other novelties:
Illinois Maryland

Iowa Ohio

Maine Pennsylvania

Ten states ban all consumer fireworks:

Arizona Minnesota

Connecticut New Jersey

Delaware New York

Georgia Rhode Island

Massachusetts Vermont

Studies have suggested that state laws regulating the sale of fireworks directly affect

the occurrence of fireworks-related injuries. In one state, the number of injuries seen in

emergency departments more than doubled following the legalization of fireworks.

4

An estimated 8,500 people sought treatment for fireworks-related injuries in 1998.

Forty-five percent of those were children under the age of 15.5 Further, fireworks caused

13 fatalities.

6 Despite the increasing consumption of fireworks over the last decade, fireworks injuries have actually decreased (Figure 1). This trend is possibly due to the

increasing popularity of large, professionally executed public fireworks displays, which

use thousands of pounds of fireworks and rarely cause injuries.

Figure 1. Rate of Fireworks-Related Injuries per

100,000 Pounds of Fireworks7

YEAR FIREWORKS CONSUMPTION

(millions lb)

ESTIMATED FIREWORKSRELATED INJURIESINJURIES/100,000 LB

OF FIREWORKS

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

67.6

71.7

87.1

101.9

117.0

115.0

118.0

132.9

12,100

11,000

12,600

12,300

12,500

10,900

7,800

8,300

17.8

14.9

14.5

12.0

10.7

9.4

6.2

6.2

Despite this downward trend, fireworks remain dangerous. Each year, newspapers

report numerous instances of people injured or killed by fireworks. Examples include:

S On July 6, 2000, a man was killed while launching powerful, professional-caliber

rockets near a friend’s home. He apparently leaned over the rocket when it did not

immediately launch and was struck in the head when the rocket fired several seconds

later.

8

S In a similar accident, a New York man was killed when he peered into the mouth

of a launch tube for an aerial bomb. When the charge initially failed to fire, he

looked inside the mortar tube and was nearly decapitated when the charge went off

several seconds later.

9
S In Colorado, a 10-inch mortar shell thought to be a dud exploded after a fireworks display had concluded. Six firefighters standing nearby were taken to the hospital for hearing tests.

10

S In Iowa, a teenager was killed and five were injured when fireworks thrown from

their sport utility vehicle blew back into the vehicle, causing a fire and a crash.

11

Of injuries caused by fireworks:

S 70 to 75% occur during a 30-day period surrounding July 4 (June 23– July 23)

S Seven out of 100 persons injured require hospitalization

S Males are three times more likely than females to be injured

S Boys between the ages of 10 and 14 have the highest rates of injury

S Common injuries are to the hands (34%), face (12%), and eyes (17%).

12

The following discussion is based on a 3-year average using 1996–98 National Fire

Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) data and reflects injuries, fatalities, and fire loss

associated with fires caused by fireworks, which are different from the figures presented

earlier that reflect injuries, fatalities, and property loss caused directly by fireworks.

Fireworks fires cause approximately $15 million in property loss, injure 50, and kill

15 annually. Most fires are clustered around Independence Day, New Year’s Eve, and

other holidays or celebrations.

Fifty-seven percent of fires caused by fireworks occur in July, and nearly 20% occur

on July 4 (Figure 2). The majority are in open fields or vacant lots.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Percent

Figure 2. Fireworks Fires by Month

(3-year average (1996–98) from NFIRS data)

As such, the materials most commonly ignited by fireworks are grass, leaves, straw,

and rubbish. These types of fires have a relatively low property loss.
Given the high number of children injured by fireworks, it is not surprising that the

most common ignition factor for fires related to fireworks is children playing with or

otherwise misusing fireworks.

Casualties from fireworks fires are somewhat less than those from all fires (Figure

3), and property loss is significantly less because most fireworks fires are outside fires

with lower dollar value than structure fires.

Figure 3. Loss Measures From Fireworks

(3-year average (1996–98) from NFIRS data)

MEASURE ALL FIRES FIREWORK

FIRES

Dollar Loss/Fire

Injuries/1,000 Fires

Fatalities/1,000 Fires

$5,619

15.7

2.4

$2,295

8.5

1.8

In addition to civilian injuries, fireworks fires are also deadly to firefighters. For

example, in separate 1998 incidents in Alabama and Oklahoma, two firefighters were

killed as a result of fires caused by fireworks.

13

Because fireworks can be dangerous and deadly, the safest way to enjoy them is

through public displays conducted by professional pyrotechnicians hired by communities

over July 4 or at other times during the year.

NOTES

1. “CPSC Holds Fireworks Safety Press Conference on Mall in Washington,” Press Release, Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), June 28, 2000.

2. Federal and State Regulations, CPSC.

3. Ibid.

4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Serious Eye Injuries Associated With Fireworks, United States 1990–1994,”

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 1995; 44; 449–452.

5. Press Release, CPSC, June 28, 2000, loc. cit.

6. National Electronic Injury Surveillance System, CPSC.

7. American Pyrotechnics Association.

8. Rozek, Dan and Main, Frank, “Fireworks Accident Kills Lombard Man,” Chicago Sun–Times, July 6, 2000.

9. “Fireworks Accident Kills New York Man, Cause Injuries Elsewhere,” The Associated Press, July 5, 2000.

10. Ibid.

11. “National Briefs,” The Houston Chronicle, July 6, 2000.

12. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Injuries From Fireworks in the United States,” Morbidity and Mortality

Weekly Report, 2000, June 23; 49 (24): 545–546.

13. USFA Fallen Firefighters database.

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