|
LOSSES
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, national
losses involving fireworks amount to 3 deaths and 10,527
injuries annually. Hand and finger injuries are the most common
and account for 32 percent of all injuries. Head and eye
injuries occur with about the same frequency, equaling 19 and 18
percent of total injuries.
BACKGROUND
A review of firework mishaps shows a variety of factors
contribute to the typical mishap. Most pre-school age victims
are injured by fireworks ignited by someone else, while older
children who are injured are usually lighting the fireworks
themselves. Children under age five are commonly hurt by
rocket-type fireworks; small firecrackers and ground spinners
injure the majority of children between the ages of 5 and 14.
Most of the injuries associated with large, illegal firecrackers
such as M-80's are to older teenagers or adults.
|