The heat and light from sparklers are meant to celebrate the Fourth of July and other events. But all too often, a sparkler is the source of skin burns, causing more than half of fireworks-related injuries for children under the age of 5.
``Most of the toddlers we see are hurt after using novelty fireworks such as sparklers,'' said Lisa Pardi, injury prevention coordinator at Akron Children's Hospital. ``And they get a lot of burns because of their curiosity. Their faces get near the fireworks, and it's like they're in a trance. They want to touch it.''
Sparklers are legal in Ohio. More dangerous firecrackers, bottle rockets, Roman candles and other fireworks are illegal, but still may be purchased in the state, as long as the buyer agrees to take them outside state lines.
Last year, Children's treated 10 people for fireworks-related injuries.
More than half of those cases occurred within a month of July 4, Pardi said.
Fireworks-related accidents killed six people and sent 9,300 people to hospital emergency departments across the country last year, according to the annual fireworks report conducted by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Nearly half of those injured were children 15 or younger.
Males were three times as likely to be burn victims, according to the report. At even more risk were boys ages 10 to 14.
``They're more prone to do risky activities like hold a firecracker in their hand, even the bottle rockets.'' said Dr. Mike Mackan, director of emergency medical services for Summa Health System. ``They'll hold them and not let go until they take off; and that runs the risk of hitting them, especially in the eye.''
While left unattended in his bedroom Wednesday evening, 7-year-old Jesse Franklin Jr. of Lorain lighted an H-100, a type of firecracker.
The explosion was so powerful it blew out his bedroom window and left him without fingers on his left hand.
He was in MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland in stable condition Thursday evening.
His father, Jesse Franklin Sr., was charged with endangering children, unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance, and failure to secure a dangerous ordnance.
Hand injuries are the most common wounds from fireworks, but second is eye injury, which sent 1,200 people to the doctor last year, according to the national report.
Eye injury usually occurs in one of two ways, said Kira Zwayer, spokeswoman for Prevent Ohio Blindness.
People hold the fireworks they're lighting and lean over them, or sparks from novelty fireworks fly into their eyes.
Burns, broken bones and loss of fingers are among the most common injuries seen at Summa, Mackan said.
Akron General Medical Center did not see a large volume of trauma-related burn patients over the July 4 holiday last year and does not expect to see anything out of the ordinary this weekend, said Joe Jerek, spokesman for the hospital.
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