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The Fourth of July is one of the busiest times of the year for firefighters.
They want to make sure you stay safe enjoying fireworks and backyard cookouts.
Many of the calls they respond to can actually be prevented.
Cleveland 19 News spoke with firefighters at Euclid Fire Department’s Station 1 before the holiday kicked off.
Setting off your own fireworks is illegal in Ohio, but Lt. Bill Mastroianni knows many people do it anyway.
He doesn’t recommend it, and he’s speaking from experience.
“But if you are going to use them, we encourage no children using them. And sparklers used by the supervision of an adult. Because sparklers can actually blow hotter than a blowtorch which is about 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit, hotter than fires we go into. So there can be severe burn injuries, eye injuries,” Mastroianni said.
He says 70 percent of the injuries they see are burns, often to people’s hands and fingers.
He’d rather see you go to your city’s professional fireworks show, but if you do light off your own, he says keep a garden hose ready.
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source: Cleveland19.com
LOCAL NEWS: Fourth of July Safety Tips From Firefighters was originally published on praisecleveland.com
