Experts provide firework safety advice for Northeast Wisconsinites this Fourth of July

HOWARD, Wis. (NBC 26) -- Independence Day is coming up this weekend and fireworks are flying off the shelves after a year when many Fourth of July events were canceled during the pandemic.

RELATED STORIES

• Local fireworks vendors work to overcome supply shortage
• Hospitals urge safety during fireworks season
• Here's a list of fireworks shows for Independence Day 2021 in Northeast Wisconsin

"I had an accident years ago at a fireworks convention and it hurts," Decker's Uncle Sam Fireworks co-owner Chuck Decker said.

Decker learned his lesson when a firework exploded in his eye.

"The No. 1 is safety glasses," he said. "I'm not afraid to light anything if I got glasses on, because that's one thing you can't fix is a bad eye."

This Fourth of July, the owner of the Howard-based store has tips on how you can stay safe while lighting fireworks. Decker says read the warning labels.

"There's a caution warning," he said. "They all say 'emits showers of sparks.' And all the ones that go up in the air, they say 'shoots flaming balls.'"

According to the CDC, nearly 10,000 people across the United States received medical attention for firework-related injuries in 2019.

UW Health Dr. Jeff Pothof usually sees the most injuries occur with intoxicated adults.

"Make sure you pick the designated firework lighter, someone who has none or very little to drink," the emergency medicine physician said. "Because that would significantly decrease the chance of having a bad burn or firework-related injury."

Pothof says you should avoid giving hot sparklers to young children. Instead, he advises glow sticks.

"They're so startled that they throw it and then it hits someone else or lands somewhere," Pothof said. "And we see burns happen that way, so kind of misadventures with sparklers."

While he's seen patients with life-threatening injuries, the doctor has guidance in a worst case scenario.

"It's best to seek the advice of a medical professional before just trying to treat [an injury] at home," Pothof said. "Just because they can be more severe injuries than what you realize."

If you light a firework and it doesn’t detonate, doctors say you shouldn’t try to relight the wick. Because it can still go off up to an hour later.

"They’re trying to figure out what’s going on, they get over it and the thing goes off," Pothof said. "You catch it with your chest and then it explodes. And that can be a life-threatening injury. That’s a really dangerous situation to put yourself in."