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Fourth of July

Before you give your kid a sparkler, read this

Sydney C Greene
USA TODAY

Sparklers may make for a Facebook worthy Fourth of July photo, but parents should remember to keep an eye on kids during and after they handle the pretty, but dangerous hand-held fireworks. 

The fiery sticks can reach up to 3,000℉ when ignited, hot enough to cause severe skin burns and catch flammable clothing on fire. Parents should take extreme caution when handling sparklers with children, due to the high chances of being burned.

Be careful this Fourth of July!

"Definitely children under the age of 10 should have adult supervision," Lorie Butts of Mountaineer Fireworks in Inwood, West Virginia, said. 

Butts recommends keeping a bucket of water nearby to dispose of the sparkler once it goes out instead of tossing it to the ground. She said hot temperatures still remain on the stick after the fire goes out. 

"(Sparklers) are still hot, and you can step on them," Butts said, noting she had burned her feet as a child after she stepped on a hot sparkler. 

Butts said there are other alternatives to metal sparklers like bamboo sparklers, which don't stay hot after they're burned, decreasing the risk of burn-related injuries.  

In 2016, there was an estimated 900 emergency room visits related to sparklers, where 400 of those injuries were children aged 0-4, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported

 

 

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