Most employees look forward to time away from work in the summer. Especially in July—with Independence Day giving people time off to paint the town red, white and blue. If you were to ask 100 people to name something you’d see at a Fourth of July party, you might get answers like a barbeque, watermelon or an American flag, but you’d definitely also hear about fireworks. And it’s that common element of most people’s celebrations that makes July National Fireworks Safety Month, which can make for a dazzling theme when planning your facility’s digital display safety presentation.

A digital display presentation within your workplace is a great way to reinforce the toolbox talks and off-the-job safety messages you deliver specifically for the month. Presenting important safety information multiple times in various forms will ensure your message is remembered—because the more people hear or see something, the more likely it will sink in. But simply putting random safety stats on a screen isn’t enough to make a lasting impression. If you want to capture the attention of the people in view of the TV or digital signboard, you need to present a topic that interests them. And nothing catches attention like bright celebratory explosions in the sky.

Because they’re mostly associated with Fourth of July holiday fun, and they are so commonly used throughout the month, many people become complacent about the risks associated with fireworks. In fact, a U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) report showed a significant upward trend in fireworks-related injuries over the past 15 years. Making fireworks safety the topic of a digital display presentation within your facility is a great way to remind people about the hazards of the upcoming holiday.

According to the CPSC, there were an estimated 10,200 people treated in emergency rooms with fireworks-related injuries in 2022. And 73% of those injuries occurred during the weeks before and after the July Fourth holiday. These types of stats are a great way to get people’s attention in a digital display presentation. And you can keep them engaged by offering actionable advice.

Be sure to include practical information alongside the injury data. Try starting the presentation with standard warnings for people who will be responsible for setting off the fireworks. Divide these up over multiple slides to make sure they have the highest impact.

1. Remember: Fireworks are highly explosive devices that can kill you.
2. Make sure all of the fireworks are legal where you live and will be setting them off.
3. Only use fireworks that are labeled for consumer use.
4. Read and follow all warnings and instructions.
5. Wear personal protective equipment, including hand protection (gloves), eye protection (goggles), foot protection (steel toe boots or at the very least walking boots) and hearing protection (ear plugs or earmuffs). Arms and legs should be covered—the summer apparel of t-shirts and shorts are not acceptable in this situation.
6. Never place any part of your body directly over the fireworks when lighting the fuse.
7. Move to a safe distance immediately after lighting fireworks.
8. Keep a bucket of water or a hose nearby in case there’s a malfunction or a fire.
9. Never try to relight or handle fireworks that fizzle, fail to go off or malfunction in any way. Soak them with water and throw them away.
10. Never use fireworks while impaired by alcohol or drugs.

Consider the human factors of others

Don’t forget about fireworks safety tips for viewers! It’s easy to think the risk of fireworks mostly rests on the shoulders of the people setting them off, but the crowds of people who show up to watch the spectacle aren’t 100% safe either. The audience are relying on the humans responsible for igniting the explosives. And we all know that humans are fallible. In fact, viewers may be more at risk than the folks lighting the fuses—one CPSC study showed that 65% of people injured by fireworks are bystanders.

A general rule for observing fireworks: Watch from at least 500 feet away from where fireworks are being launched and respect all safety barriers put in place for professional fireworks displays. 

And while we’re on the topic of being too close to the July Fourth action, consider this fact: Sparklers are the second most common cause of fireworks-related emergency room visits.

Kids are often given sparklers to wave around on occasions that have fireworks. This leads people to falsely believe that sparklers are safe. But sparklers aren’t children’s toys—they are responsible for about three times the number of emergency department-treated injuries than small firecrackers. A digital display reminder that sparklers burn at approximately 2000°F (hot enough to melt some metals) can go a long way in promoting 24/7 safety.

In addition to those eye-catching injury and temperature facts, a list of sparkler safety tips for families makes for great digital display presentation material:

1. Only use sparklers outside, never indoors.
2. Children under the age of 12 should only be given sparklers if their parents deem they are mature enough to handle them and only under close supervision. (The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia says that children between the ages of 5 and 9 are more than twice as likely as people in other age groups to be injured by fireworks.)
3. Sparklers should be held an arm’s length away from the body.
4. Stick the sparkler into a carrot for ease of holding and to ensure an accidental burn doesn’t happen as the flame nears the bottom (gloves are another option for handling sparklers).
5. Keep a six-foot radius from other people using sparklers.
6. Don’t run when handling lit sparklers; each person should remain in one place.
7. Never allow anyone to hold more than one sparkler at a time.
8. Closed-toe shoes should be worn while handling sparklers in order to avoid foot burns.
9. When the sparkler has burned out, it’s important to place the hot end in a bucket of cold water or sand and leave it there for several hours. Spent sparklers stay hot for a long time!

Glow sticks are a burn-free alternative to sparklers that kids still enjoy—in your presentation, encourage workers to replace sparklers with glow sticks at their next gathering with fireworks. If your workplace has a budget for it, provide glow sticks for workers to take home as sparkler replacements. They may be more likely to remember the safety tips and follow through with them if glow sticks are provided.

Now that you have all the information for an informative and engaging fireworks safety presentation, the next step is to put it together in a compelling way that catches the attention of the people in your facility. Our quick guide to mastering digital safety presentations can help you ensure that the presentation you create has all the elements to attract viewers and keep safety front of mind. Your goal is to ensure that your employees are safe 24/7, and creating a presentation with the explosive information contained here is bound to captivate them as the summer holidays arrive.