Fire marshals warn Minnesotans about firework injuries

The state fire marshal said firework-related injuries send on average of 80 people to the hospital in Minnesota each year, and even more injuries go unreported.

If it flies or explodes, it’s illegal in Minnesota, but even something as simple as a sparkler makes up 30% of injuries in the state.

"They get anywhere between 1,000 and 1,600 degrees, which is hot enough to melt metal," said Nathan Layne, operations supervisor for Allina Health. "A lot of times it’s third-degree burns."

Layne often spends his holiday weekend responding to injuries, and he said around 45% involve children.

"Children are typically unsupervised when they’re using these. That’s how they’re getting injured or honestly if they’re being injured by adults who are under the influence of alcohol," he said.

He also sees more serious injuries that come from illegal explosive fireworks that people bring across state lines.

"We do see a lot of those illegal fireworks come over, and when they are fireworks that do fly or they do explode — I mean, those kinds of injuries have potential to remove fingers, to remove large amounts of tissue and cause significant trauma," Layne said.

If you plan to light off any kind of firework for the holiday, always point them away from people and in open areas away from trees and houses.