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Ensuring your firework fun stays safe
Firework season is enjoyed by many, as the skies fill with sounds, colours and extravagant light shows across neighbourhoods in the UK. As much as people enjoy watching the bright displays, we should be aware of how important it is to be safe, when buying, lighting or viewing fireworks.
It all starts with where we purchase our fireworks from, whether they’re authorised sellers of goods that have passed any quality assurance tests.
A CE mark on a product shows that it has been assessed to meet high safety, health and environmental protection requirements. When items have a CE mark, the manufacturer is making it clear that the product meets all the legal requirements to be considered safe for consumer use. With fireworks, this means minimising risks when they are used correctly.
Fireworks without a CE mark and those sold by unauthorised sellers often lack the quality and safety assurance for consumers to enjoy a hazard-free celebration. Unauthorised sellers typically offer fireworks at attractively low prices. This cost-saving however masks a grim reality: the fireworks may be substandard, defective, or even illegal.
When these substandard fireworks are used, there is a high likelihood that users or spectators will suffer minor burns, serious injuries and in the worst-case scenario, fatalities. Mishandling of these dangerous explosives can also result in property damage, fires and mass panic.
As the countdown to firework season begins, let’s prioritise safety and making informed decisions, so we can all enjoy spectacular and safe firework displays.
