Fewer are injured by fireworks

fireworksFireworks.Photo: Jon Olav Nesvold / NTB scanpix

The number of fireworks injuries have decreased by nearly 70 percent after the ban on stick rockets was introduced in 2008.

In 2007 – the year before the ban on rockets on a stick came into force, 155 accidents involving fireworks were reported nationwide. In 2015-2016 there was 54 incidents reported, and the average for the past seven years is 57 reported incidents, according to figures from the Directorate for Civil Protection and Emergency Planning (DSB).

Stricter regulations, shorter sales periods and other prohibited zones are some of the reasons why there are fewer and less serious fireworks injuries.

On average over the last seven years, 83 percent of the reported incidents resulted in injuries. For 2015-2016 the figure was only slightly above 87 percent (47 of 54 incidents).

The last seven years no people have died as a result of fireworks injuries.

“Because there was a ban on the use of stick rockets in 2008, we have good reason to believe that the reporting of accidents with fireworks after 2008 are mainly accidents with fireworks boxes,” according to a report by the DSB.

The numbers speak for themselves when it comes to injuries: A total of 66 percent are men and only 26 percent are women. In the rest of the injuries gender is not reported.

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today

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