The Knoxville Fire Department is reminding the community of Independence Day safety especially when it comes to those who legally shoot off fireworks.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, the only safe way to view fireworks is to attend a professional show, and fireworks cause thousands of injuries in the United States every year. According to the same source,  more than 19,500 reported fires are started by fireworks annually and half of firework injuries seen at emergency rooms were extremities. As kid friendly as sparklers may seem, they can be just as dangerous as they account for roughly one-quarter of emergency room fireworks injuries.

Knoxville city ordinance does not allow for the shooting of fireworks in city limits. This ordinance may be confusing as there are many firework stands in Knoxville, but due to state legislation, it is legal to buy and possess fireworks in the state and communities can develop their own ordinances. The time that shooting off fireworks is legal is if you have a permit to put on a show, or if you are setting them off in unincorporated areas of Marion County between the hours 6:00-11:00 pm on July 4th. Knoxville Fire Chief Cal Wyman says it’s important to be smart when it comes to fireworks.

“It’s 4th of July and obviously it’s a big day for our country. We want to celebrate it and have fun but just be smart about it. Don’t be a firework statistic. There are a lot of them out there. We actually see that more than ⅓ of injuries from fireworks are from kids under the age of 14. That’s a big number when you look at fireworks injuries across the nation.”

Hear more from Wyman about Independence Day safety on today’s Let’s Talk Knoxville.