Fireworks can explode into catastrophe, fire chief warns

BY BRENT FOX

The Advertiser

NovaNewsNow.com

Consumer fireworks are dangerous and need to be better regulated. Grafton resident Jason Rushton thinks so, anyway, and he has reason to be concerned.

His spouse’s mother was struck on the forehead by fireworks at a Digby-area recreational campsite Saturday evening, July 21. And she had been holding Rushton’s 18-month-old daughter just before it happened.

The toddler was still near her grandmother when the incident occurred, but was unhurt. The adult victim suffered burns and shock.

Rushton said, “my daughter; the shot would’ve killed her. It could have been worse.”

He said of fireworks, “it’s highly explosive stuff. Someone has to do something.”

Rushton said people think it’s nice to set off fireworks for the kids, but it has to be thought through.

Rushton said, “even if someone is transporting it in their cars, there should be a sign.”

Kings County Firefighters Association president New Minas Fire Chief Jim Redmond said that consumer fireworks are dangerous from many perspectives and users should be trained or licensed in their use.

“I’m not very happy about it being sold out of convenience stores,” Redmond said. “It’s way too accessible. You’re allowed to buy it as long as you’re over 18.”

‘Ready-made incendiary’: Redmond

At the stores, the fireworks have to meet storage and display regulations. But once purchased, Redmond said, the material could easy become accessible to children if not stored out of reach or locked up.

There’s the danger aspect of the material, Redmond said, but also the fact that, from the firefighters’ point of view, it’s a ready-made incendiary.

All fireworks are dangerous, can cause personal injury and can be a source of disastrous fires, the chief said. It’s only a matter of time before injuries and fires caused by their use are reported.

At least one intentional fire in the New Minas area has been attributed to fireworks.

“It’s a Molotov cocktail you can buy at a convenience store,” Redmond said.

Derwin Swinemar of the Provincial Fire Marshal’s office said, “these are explosive devices; they’re incendiaries and should be used with caution.”

Swinemar said that fire chiefs should be notified of their intended use, just as there is a need for a burning permit.

Redmond noted that professional commercial fireworks operators who present the larger public shows are well regulated.

Even then, like with everything else, accidents can happen. In Wolfville on Canada Day, a small grass fire broke out on the dykes when a fireworks ember didn’t burn out fully before hitting the ground.