Remember, remember the fifth of November…
…accidents happen a lot
2 I 10 I 09
As bonfire night fast
approaches, most of us will be looking forward to the annual
fireworks spectacle. Even though fireworks have long been a
tradition at this time, a cautionary word on the risk of serious
injury they carry is worthy of mention.
Unsurprisingly, the
period late October to mid-November sees a spike in the number of
firework-related accidents and injuries. Sometimes it’s a problem
with the firework itself; sometimes it’s the recklessness of those
using them. Or it might be the way that displays are set up.
Regardless, the statistical evidence indicates that
incidentsof injury
continue to occur as a result of being near fireworks.
A raft of legislation
introduced in recent years has sought to contain the problems
caused by fireworks being used inappropriately. There are now
stringent regulations governing who can buy fireworks and when they
can be bought. The regulations also place restrictions on who can
sell fireworks, as well as when and where fireworks can be
used.
Government figures
suggest that around 1,000 people are injured each year during the
fortnight around bonfire night. Ten percent of those are severely
injured or killed. Almost half of all injuries occur at family or
private displays, while around 10-15% of injuries arise at
semi-public parties or large public displays.
Approximately 50% of all
injuries for which statistics are available were caused by rockets,
while a fifth of injuries are typically caused by sparklers. More
than one third of all injuries were to the hand, with eye injuries
the next most common injury followed by injuries to the face.
Almost half of all injuries recorded in the Government’s statistics
were suffered by children aged between 5 and 17.
Jonathan Rees, a partner
at law firm Hugh James, said: “Health and safety experts are often
derided as killjoys putting a dampener on firework displays and
other similar events. Common sense suggests that the chances of
being injured by a firework are statistically slight. But fireworks
are inherently dangerous and must be used responsibly.
Most solicitors would
agree that injuries leading to claims for compensation tend to
happen when people fail to adequately assess the risk to their own
and/or others’ personal safety. That risk assessment process need
not be laborious and onerous, but it should be thorough and
effective and it should be undertaken by anyone contemplating
lighting a firework or arranging a display.”
Jonathan Rees continued:
“Hugh James has acted in cases where for example children have been
injured at organised displays simply because there had been no or
no adequate assessment of the potential for injury where spectators
were allowed to be too close to live fireworks. Had the risk
assessment been thorough and effective, had the manufacturer’s
instructions been adhered to, and had advice such as that freely
available from the Fire Service, the Royal Society for the
Prevention of Accidents, the Health and Safety Executive and others
been followed, the injuries would not have been caused. That’s not
hindsight, it’s common sense.”
He concluded:
“Legislation does seem to be making a difference. Year on year the
number of firework injuries at least seem to be reducing. Let’s
hope that this year’s festivities continue that trend.”
