AUSTIN, Texas — The video attached was published on July 4, 2020.
The Austin-Travis County EMS (ATCEMS) is telling Central Texans to be safe with fireworks this New Year's Eve.
In a tweet ATCEMS sent out in the morning on Dec. 31, the agency stated that over the last 15 years, from 2006-2021, there has been an increase in people injured by fireworks. The statistic, cited from a report created by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), indicates that over the 15-year period, there has been an increase in firework-related injuries by 25%.
In 2021 alone, nine people died and 11,500 people were taken to the emergency room in relation to injuries from fireworks.
"Of the nine deaths, six were from misuse, one mortar launch malfunction and two were unknown," ATCEMS stated. "The 11,500 emergency room visits were down from 15,600 experienced in 2020, during the first year of COVID-19."
ATCEMS also stated other statistics found within the CPSC report, which details the age and kind of injuries people experienced during the New Year's Eve festivities. The highest rate of ER visits were from adults ages 20-24, and the most injured body part were the hands and fingers, which made up 31% of all injuries.
The second highest injury location was the head, face and ears region, totaling 21% of all injuries. Of all the ER visits, 32% were for burns in a variety of locations.
Furthermore, 31% of all fireworks were found to have fuse violations, banned chemicals and pyrotechnic overloads. Pyrotechnic overloads are when firework shows get out of control.
Read more on fireworks safety and how to stay safe while ringing in the new year here.