Bonfire Night: What is the firework code?
Thursday 5 November marks 'Bonfire Night' and with organised firework displays cancelled, fire services across the region are warning people to take extra care.
Figures show that between 2018 and 2019, almost 2,000 people in England needed treatment for burns due to firework-related accidents.
What is the firework code?
Plan your firework display to make it safe and enjoyable, and check the time you can legally set off fireworks
Only buy fireworks which carry the CE mark, keep them in a closed box and use them one at a time
Read and follow the instructions on each firework using a torch if necessary
Light the firework at arm's length with a taper and stand well back
Keep naked flames, including cigarettes, away from fireworks
Never return to a firework once it has been lit
Don't put fireworks in pockets and never throw them
Direct any rocket fireworks well away from spectators
Never use paraffin or petrol on a bonfire
Make sure that the fire is out and surroundings are made safe before leaving
People who want to use fireworks at home are being urged to follow the Firework Code Credit: Library image
When it comes to lighting fireworks, Public safety Officer, Craig Lyons, says: "Read the instructions using a torch and lighting it with a taper at a safe arms length and move away from it."
Tony Peel is one of many firefighters who will be on duty on Bonfire Night. He says: "This year it's all about public safety. One concern we have with Covid cancelling displays is that people will have them in their back garden and it being too small for them."