Fireworks Injuries Reported

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Three patients at Nebraska Medical Center in serious condition
Posted: 5:48 PM Jul 5, 2008
Last Updated: 3:20 PM Jul 6, 2008
Email Address: sixonline@wowt.com

31 comments

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At least one local hospital is reporting what they call an unusually high number of fireworks-related injuries. The Nebraska Medical Center has seen 11 of these patients since Friday.

They usually see 12-16 patients with fireworks-related injuries over a two-week period.

Three of the patients are in serious condition. A 22-year-old man has facial injuries from sparklers taped together, a 21-year-old man has facial injuries from an artillery shell and a 16-year-old girl has leg injuries also from an artillery shell.

A Hickman, Nebraska family has been displaced from their home after fireworks sparked a fire in an attached garage. The Lancaster County Sheriff's Department says the fire started about 2:30 a.m. Saturday in a garbage can near the garage that contained fireworks. The fire then spread to the garage.

The family, who was alerted to the fire by their dog, fled the home. No one was hurt. Authorities estimate the damage to the garage at $75,000, with $25,000 in lost contents.

Thirty-seven people were hurt when a Fourth of July fireworks shell misfired in Charles City, Iowa. The accident sent a fireball skidding down a city street and into a crowd gathered to watch the display.

Charles City Assistant Fire Chief Dave Beamer says 12 of those injured were taken to the Floyd County Medical Center by ambulance. Officials say most of the people treated following the mishap suffered minor injuries.

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Comments are posted from viewers like you and do not always reflect the views of this station.

Posted by: MW on Jul 8, 2008 at 01:35 PM
I just wonder how many people actually thought about the meaning of the holiday while they were shooting off fireworks against the law. An as far as I know, the young men and women are fighting to preserve our freedoms but not the freedom to break the laws

Posted by: EMILY KUDLACZ on Jul 8, 2008 at 11:49 AM
i would just like to make a comment to "RM" and "Lou" and all the other jerks who are calling my brother an idiot and a moron, and a sinner? who are you to judge his intelligence by AN ACCIDENT. who are you to play god and label him a sinner? THIS WAS A FLUKE! how dare you be so inconsiderate and cold hearted when a 22 year old man is sitting in a hospital in so much pain and distress wondering if he will get to see again. think about that. how dare you make these negative comments. you should think about the people who your hurting with your words before you post them. my family and i haven't slept in days and have been sick with worry since it happened and none of us appreciate your negativity in a time when we need to remain positive and strong for our brother, our son, and our friend. next time you want to be a tough guy on the computer,think twice. your words can be more hurtful than you think. get some compassion and grow a heart jerk.

Posted by: Phil on Jul 7, 2008 at 03:05 PM
To those who say it is their right, no it's not.To those who say it is only one night, no it's not. To those who say it is only little fireworks, no it's not. I had to give my pets tranquilizers. The only problem was I did not get enough for five days. By the way, my house was the only house on my block to fly the FLAG. Happy 4th of July.

Posted by: me on Jul 7, 2008 at 01:50 PM
it doesn't surprise me that there were all these injuries related to fireworks this year. my neighborhood sounded like a war zone this year on the 4th of July. the noise and racket went on and on until like 11 o'clock at night. I really enjoyed watching the beautiful fireworks lighting up the sky. (I even noticed one of my neighbors cleaning up after his own mess!)but all those noisy things I can do without. and then they kept on going all weekend too. oh well. at least it all is over for another year.

Posted by: Jesse on Jul 7, 2008 at 11:27 AM
This is typical. People don’t understand that Fireworks most of the time is more of a non-critical public nuisance like noise. If the police had to respond to every fireworks call, they wouldn't be enforcing more critical public safety issues such as drunk driving. Then when something happens (e.g., drunk driving death), the people who complain about fireworks keeping them awake would then say OPD didn't do enough to prevent that. The cycle never ends.

Posted by: Get over it on Jul 7, 2008 at 11:18 AM
People need to learn to GET OVER IT ! ! ! It happens once a year for crying out loud ! ! ! Get a life & complain about something that is more important than this ! ! !

Posted by: Steve on Jul 7, 2008 at 11:16 AM
And we have to tell these people to be careful with MATCHES ? ? ? If you play with fire, you're gonna get burned ! ! !

Posted by: Biff on Jul 7, 2008 at 06:54 AM
Pete - I do get along with people - those who actually adhere to the laws, even those with which they disagree! I'm actually surprised that there were not more injuries - people in my area have been shooting fireworks since June 20 (and they've not stopped yet). Maybe these people don't work, but they should still consider that (1) it's illegal to shoot fireworks in city limits and (2) some people do work during the week and would like a good night's sleep.

Posted by: Pete on Jul 7, 2008 at 12:26 AM
The people in Omaha nowadays are such snobs. It's fireworks people, big deal. Can you not find something more important to harp on? hmm, maybe violence? Guns and automobiles cause more fatalities than cigarettes, fireworks, pitbulls, and three cent tax "hikes" as you all call them. Get real people. Relax, things happen, enjoy life and quit being so bitter about every little thing that comes up. If you don't like it where you are, move. Canadians say we are such an angry nation, I'm not so sure they are too far off after reading this board all month. Maybe we can put more effort into getting along with people instead of kicking whenever we see the opportunity. Get over yourselves.

Posted by: jjj on Jul 6, 2008 at 09:34 PM
Sure was easy keeping my 6 month old asleep....thanks "neighbors". Why are people so inconsiderate?

Posted by: ellen on Jul 6, 2008 at 06:49 PM
My 12 year old dog hasn't eaten for two days and sat in a corner trembling in fear the last two nights thanks to my neighbors' fireworks. Walking down my street last night, I saw what looked like 2 eight year old kids lighting fireworks in the street while their parents sat smiling in lawn chairs, watching. Unbelievably inconsiderate and clueless.

Posted by: Lou on Jul 6, 2008 at 03:30 PM
I'm not surprised. It was bound to happen. People are so foolish. I feel sorry for the medical personnel who had to work to patch them up & then charge Big Bucks for it. Someone responsible wasn't there to make enough of a difference for those who got hurt because people are so estranged from each other these days. They have gone their own way. They don't like having to answer to anyone with wisdom & good common sense. Result: Idiots rule! The latter is just another name for stupid ignoramic sinners who break God's law & man's too. People need to be lectured to & taught lessons. They need to hear, listen & obey. Sooner or later, someone is NOT going to be there to pick up the pieces. Americans can & will only do just so much to help each other. The line gets drawn at some point. If rogue Americans don't care enough to respect other's wishes for a quiet peaceful life, a SAFE 4th of July, then it behooves the normal righteous law-abiding person to let the rebellious go to _ _ _ _!

Posted by: kevin on Jul 6, 2008 at 01:06 PM
The idiot across the street from me has not yet cleaned up the mess in the street from his little party. Perhaps he's waiting for the wind to do it for him. I have a low tolerance for inconsiderate people, and this clown fits right in.

Posted by: A Soldier on Jul 6, 2008 at 12:47 PM
To: Keith. Only 3 hours of sleep! you poor baby. I would love to get 3 hours of sleep a night instead it is like 1-2 hours per night between being fired on and explosions all around, you should have it so lucky! I encourage everyone to go out and thank those who gave you the right to celebrate in the first place.

Posted by: CH on Jul 6, 2008 at 12:44 PM
Is it to my understanding that UNMC is the only place that people went for fireworkds injuries? You know there are 7 other hospitals in Omaha including Childrens, 1 in Papillion & 2 in Council Bluffs. Didn't these recieve any fireworks injuries? If not that is great but, I know they did because I work at one of them.

Posted by: Anonymous on Jul 6, 2008 at 11:46 AM
A lot of people get hurt and killed because of automobile accidents should we ban them like we do the fireworks.

Posted by: To Jamie on Jul 6, 2008 at 11:37 AM
First, we don't have the freedom to shoot off fireworks in Omahaa. It is illegal. These people are lawbreakers. Second, I'm not in Iraq or Afghanistan fighting at the moment so I shouldn't have to hear those illegally produced bangs every day. Thanks to all my jerk neighbors who forced me to have to climb up on my roof and remove used firework debris which thankfully didn't spark some type of fire. And a big no thank you to law enforcement for doing nothing as usual. Two things OPD doesn't care about...fireworks and gang violence.

Posted by: Jay on Jul 6, 2008 at 11:28 AM
I don't understand your comments jamie, you are celebrating that you get to break the law and set off fireworks within Omaha city limits? And I am supposed to feel happy about this because there are people serving in the armed forces? What?! Are you for real? What about the hundreds of children who are injured every year in this great country of ours because their nimwitted parents think they are qualified to handle dangerous explosives that just happen to come in brightly colored packages sold on the corner stand. Fireworks continue to become more powerful and more dangerous, and our cities become more crowded, but some people still think it is a good idea to mix crowds of people with tons of explosives. If you really feel that strongly about blowing people up jaime, then I challenge YOU to join the military. I served my time thank you (18 yrs) and I appreciate a nice safe city where I don't have to see maimed children. ENFORCE THE FIREWORK BAN OMAHA!!

Posted by: Dave on Jul 6, 2008 at 10:55 AM
Are not firworks BANNED in omaha? What good does it do to pass laws that are ignored by police? The Pit bull ban will be the same thing. A law passed does NOT mean it will be enforced or followed.

Posted by: BJ on Jul 6, 2008 at 10:23 AM
And fireworks sales were down??!!

Posted by: Common sense guy on Jul 6, 2008 at 07:38 AM
Good Job lawmakers. Instead of people being able to light off their own little $2 fireworks, everyone has to go to these big displays run by amateurs. Bigger explosions = safer?

Posted by: laura on Jul 6, 2008 at 12:24 AM
If you're stupid enough to play around with fireworks and get stupid, you deserve to get your hand burned or blown off. I remember sparklers as a child...STRICT adult supervision and my aunt & uncle (who lived on a farm and thus where we all went to do fireworks) had a METAL coffee can with some sand in it to put them in. If one of us laid one down for any reason, it was scream-city "DON'T TOUCH THAT!" I was brought up with a healthy respect for fireworks, which is why I've lived 48 years with no injuries whatsoever.

Posted by: Lori on Jul 6, 2008 at 12:12 AM
Hey, I was working off four hours of sleep after working all day in the house and then going to Offutt and helping them with THEIR celebration, then unwinding with a few beers and I shot the best game of golf I have ever shot this morning, in the RAIN. If there were fireworks in our neghborhood last night after 3 am, I never heard them. As long as the neighbirs don't light my house on fire (and they were AT it on Thursday night) and they don't disturb my sleep (they didn't LAST night and even THURSDAY night I was exhausted enough to fall asleep before the news), I don't care WHAT they do. Yes, fireworks are supposed to be outlawed, but after dealing with BAD neighbors some years ago and NO response from the cops, I say whatever. In my book, no sleep=GREAT GOLF!

Posted by: ja on Jul 5, 2008 at 11:27 PM
Fireworks injuries=perfect example of Darwinism!

Posted by: Pete on Jul 5, 2008 at 11:09 PM
So 11 people since Friday isn't bad seeing that 37 were hurt in a county sponsored event. I didn't shoot off fireworks as usual this year, but I feel that as long as done safely, fireworks are a great way to celebrate this day. Most people do take precautions, and 11 out of the whole city is a severly low number. If we had a county wide marathon, I bet more people get hurt by that than fireworks. What's the big deal, tax them and make them legal, maybe it could offset the 3 cent gas tax hike everyone is up in arms about.

Posted by: jamie on Jul 5, 2008 at 10:21 PM
Why do people always complain about the fireworks? They should be thankful that we have freedom and we can shoot off fireworks! Too bad you only got 3 hours of sleep, think about the men and woman fighting for this country right now! I bet the hear those bangs everyday! So next time you want to complain about not getting any sleep because of a holiday in which we are celebrating our freedom..think about those who can't be with family, are fighting for this country and have to hear bangs everyday!

Posted by: G on Jul 5, 2008 at 09:43 PM
In La Vista, where it is legal, you don't even need to buy any fireworks to get a good show. All you have to do is sit on your front porch and watch everyone elses firworks.

Posted by: Keith on Jul 5, 2008 at 08:40 PM
Ban? There is a ban? I just like to thank the morons in and around my neighborhood who shot off fireworks till 2:30 in the morning. Just as I was falling asleep...bang! My hope is Saturday is much quieter. Running on 3 hours sleep is no fun.

Posted by: t on Jul 5, 2008 at 08:19 PM
I don't know if it was the economy or what, but there were fewer fireworks shot off in my neighborhood this year. Whatever the reason, I'm thankful for the peace and quiet.

Posted by: Idiot Resistant on Jul 5, 2008 at 08:10 PM
You can't idiot-proof anything. No matter how hard you try, some gifted idiot comes along with superhuman stupidity and gets around it.

Posted by: RM on Jul 5, 2008 at 06:12 PM
One reason fireworks are banned in Omaha is because of morons like the guy who taped together sparklers. Although you would never know there was a ban on them bt the amount shot off inside tne city. Should make it legal and collect the sales tax or else enforce the law.