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July 4 is nearly upon us, and soon firework displays will light up the night sky across West Virginia. Fireworks can be an opportunity for family fun, but medical and fire prevention officials urge residents to use caution.
That includes Mark Lambert, director of the West Virginia State Fire Academy at West Virginia University. Lambert has more than four decades of experience in fire service, previously serving at the West Virginia State Fire Marshal’s Office for 23 years.
Lambert spoke with reporter Jack Walker about best practices for fire and personal safety around fireworks this Independence Day.
This interview was edited for length and clarity.
Walker: I was wondering if you could tell me a bit about firework laws in West Virginia: How people are allowed to engage with them, and what kinds of usage you see around July 4?
Lambert: Well, they just changed the law here a few years ago. Now, what they call the “commercial fireworks” are legal, the ones they sell in the tents. … Prior to that, most fireworks were illegal here. But now you can go to these pop up tents and other vendors around the state to buy them.
Walker: Obviously, there are a lot of different safety concerns that can arise with independent usage of these fireworks. Could you possibly outline some of the different risks that fire prevention officials see with firework usage at this time, and provide any safety recommendations regarding proper usage of the materials?
Lambert: Personally, my preference is that everybody goes and sees a public show — the nearest one to them — and stays away from the fireworks they can buy. But they are legal, so if you’re going to buy them, it’s basically the standard precautions. You want an adult handling them, never children. You want to soak what’s left afterwards in water, always outside. … Eye protection is a big one. I think about a third or a fourth to maybe a third of injuries are to the eyes.
Don’t allow running or horseplay, set them off outdoors — away from houses, dry leaves, grass and other flammable material. Always keep a bucket of water nearby for emergencies and pouring on the fireworks that don’t ignite or explode. Do not try to relight a malfunctioning or dud firework. Just soak them in the water. And you want to make sure other people are out of range. Never light them in a glass container. Even though they used to call them bottle rockets, it’s not a good idea to fire them out of a glass bottle.
And don’t experiment with homemade fireworks. A lot of times, Jack, the people will experiment with mixing fireworks together, and that’s not a safe thing to do. Flash powder, which is the powder in the firework, is not something to be toyed with. So don’t try to do your home, your own home experiments, or try to create a bigger firework by mixing fireworks. You’re probably going to end up in the ER that way.
Walker: You’ve seen some of the negative effects that improper firework usage can have. Could you speak to the personal safety element of it? What are some of the ways that improper usage of fireworks can hurt people who are just trying to have a fun July 4?
Lambert: Well, of course, I said eye damage is a big one; hand damage. Every year, people get damage to their hands from improper use, or holding a firework, and they blow a finger off or two or destroy their hand, dependent upon how they’re misusing them. The other factor sometimes that gets involved is alcohol. You want to make sure whoever’s setting the fireworks off is not only an adult, but a sober adult, preferably to make sure that all the steps are followed.
Walker: I’d imagine with fireworks, there’s also a sort of fire safety element of it as well. Could you speak to that at all? What are some of the fire risks from improper firework usage?
Lambert: Besides the personal injury, one of the big ones is setting grass fires, brush fires, by the firework landing in dry brush or dry grass and getting loose. Any kind of fire you inadvertently start like that you’re responsible for under West Virginia state law. The Division of Forestry may want to come out and have a chat with you about it. And the same as a stray spark onto a roof of a house or on a car anything like that.
For more tips on firework safety, visit the West Virginia University website.