TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — For the first time in modern-day history, Floridians can legally celebrate the fourth of July with fireworks.
Several cities across the state including Tallahassee have canceled their annual fireworks shows.
The Tallahassee fire department is expecting more people to light their own fireworks this weekend. But they want it to be done safely. A little over 9000 injuries are reported in local emergency rooms around July Fourth due to fireworks. The age group 10-14 accounts for a third of those injuries.
“We want people to be vigilant and understand that if you’re going to do them use the right safety precautions,” said Richard Jones, the deputy fire chief. “Keep everybody away, make sure that it’s on a flat surface, and don’t be near any woodlands or structures. Also, have a water source nearby in case of fire was to start. These are all things we want people to do.”
Sparklers are a popular go-to item for fireworks, but Jones’ warns sparklers are a lot more dangerous than they look.
“People like to use sparklers they say oh they just sparkle they really don’t do much," Jones said. "Well sparklers can get up to 1200 degrees. Glass melts at 900 degrees and you bake a cake at 350. So when you think about that 1200 degrees it can definitely create an injury. Twenty-five percent of injuries that are seen in an emergency room from sparklers.”
The day after July Fourth is usually one of the busiest days of the year for animal control officers and animal shelters.
Dogs are notorious for running away because they were scared by fireworks. It's best to keep them inside while fireworks are going off. If your dog runs away here's what you should do next.
“First steps are to call animal control," said Cassdy Cook, of Lewis and Clark Humane Society. “They are going to be the ones who can potentially do something about it. And always, always reach out to the Humane Society and see if anybody has brought your dog in.”
Cook says the next step is to post several pictures of your missing dog on Facebook.
Those types of posts usually get rapid shares.
