St. Petersburg Fire & Rescue would like to keep you and your family safe this holiday weekend and, so they have issued these tips for firework and water safety.
Keep fireworks, lighters, and matches away from children.
Never allow children to play with or ignite fireworks.
Sparklers are not toys, they burn at 1200
Never try to re-light or pick up fireworks that have not ignited fully.
Keep away-after lighting a firework, immediately back off and try to maintain a safe distance.
Keep a bucket of water nearby in case of an emergency. As an extra precaution, douse burned fireworks with water before discarding them in the trash.
Illegal and homemade Fireworks were involved in all 6 fireworks related reported deaths in 2012.
Never use fireworks under the influence of alcohol.
Water Safety Facts and Tips
Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death among children 1 to 4 years of age and it is the second leading cause of death for children from 5 to 14 years old.
Always watch your children closely!
Never leave a child unattended in a pool or any body of water.
When there are several adults present and children are swimming, use the Water Watcher strategy. This designates an adult as the Water Watcher for a certain amount of time, such as 15-minute periods. This person should not be reading, texting, using a smart phone or otherwise distracted.
Have lifesaving equipment such as life rings, floats or a reaching pole available and easily accessible.
Have a telephone close by when you or your family are using a pool.
Two hundred people on an average go to the emergency room every day with firework related injuries in the month of July. Some of the most injured body parts due to fireworks include hands and fingers, heads, faces and ears, legs and eyes.
More than half of these injuries are burns.