An area nonprofit is teaming up with firefighters and partners across Pennsylvania to raise awareness of a recent spike in firework-related injuries.
Since consumer-grade fireworks were green lit in Pennsylvania in 2018, they've been exploding in popularity.
According to the American Burn Association, the sale of consumer-grade fireworks more than doubled between 2019 and 2020. At that same time, firework-related injuries have increased nearly 50 percent. On Thursday, the Allentown Fire Department helped the Lehigh Valley-based nonprofit, Burn Prevention Network, launch its "Celebrate Safely, PA" campaign.
"With the rapid increase in consumer firework sales and use, it's vital that we work hard to increase firework safety awareness,” Julie Hackman, the Executive Director for the American Pyrotechnics Safety & Education Foundation, says.