The dangers of homemade firecrackers.

Around the Lunar New Year holiday each year, medical facilities nationwide, including Khanh Hoa General Hospital, often receive many cases of accidents caused by exploding homemade firecrackers. Injuries caused by firecrackers leave many lasting effects, with many cases difficult to recover from or resulting in permanent loss of function in the affected area.

Severe aftereffects

In mid-January, Khanh Hoa General Hospital admitted and treated a 15-year-old student, D.AT., residing in Cam An commune, who suffered severe injuries to his left hand due to a homemade firework explosion. The patient was admitted in a state of shock, with his left hand severely crushed. According to his family, T. had poured alcohol into a milk carton to make fireworks. During testing, the fireworks unexpectedly exploded, the immense pressure and heat causing severe damage to his hand. Doctors urgently performed emergency surgery to preserve as much function as possible. However, the third and fourth fingers were completely crushed and could not be preserved, requiring amputation. The remaining fingers were treated, reattached, and reconstructed to retain basic motor function. Currently, although the patient's wounds are gradually healing, the resulting disabilities are very serious. Mr. D.TT - the father of D.AT - choked up as he said, "As Tet approaches, I hope parents will supervise and admonish their children not to be curious about making firecrackers, and then have to bear the serious consequences like my son. The child suffers, and the parents are heartbroken."

A child patient is being treated at Khanh Hoa General Hospital for injuries sustained while attempting to make firecrackers at home.

According to statistics from the Center for Trauma, Orthopedics and Burns at Khanh Hoa General Hospital, during the period leading up to the Lunar New Year of 2025, the center received 15 cases of firework-related accidents, mostly involving students and teenagers aged 10 to 16. Many cases involved crushed hands, eye burns, facial burns, and even complex multiple injuries, with long-term effects on health and daily life. Some patients, after a year of follow-up examinations, had healed injuries but suffered permanent loss of motor function in the affected areas.

Not only in Khanh Hoa, but recently, many localities have also recorded serious firework accidents. Recently, Children's Hospital 2 ( Ho Chi Minh City) received a particularly serious case of a firework accident. The victim was a 13-year-old boy from Dong Nai province, admitted with second- and third-degree burns, with damage to almost his entire face. According to his family, he and a group of friends were playing with fireworks (purchased online) at home. While lighting them, a firework unexpectedly exploded, the flames and blast directly hitting his face, causing severe injuries. Earlier, in mid-January, the Nghe An Provincial Police discovered a junior high school student who had ordered gunpowder and firework casings online and brought them back to his dorm room to secretly manufacture fireworks to sell to classmates. Upon inspection, authorities seized 100 fireworks from his backpack; a search of his home further uncovered an additional 2,700 firecrackers and 3 kg of precursor chemicals. Timely detection and prevention have averted the risk of particularly serious consequences.

Unforeseen consequences

Dr. Pham Dinh Thanh, Deputy Director of the Orthopedic and Burn Center at Khanh Hoa General Hospital, said that accidents caused by homemade firecrackers are very serious. Due to close contact, when the chemicals explode, people are easily severely injured in the face, eyes, hands, neck, and chest. The injuries are often complex, causing soft tissue damage, deep burns, and can quickly lead to edema, obstructing breathing and causing respiratory failure. The explosive force of firecrackers can also cause blast wave syndrome, leading to multiple injuries to the head, chest, and abdomen, fractures of the arms and legs, and deep damage to internal organs. Many cases require multiple surgeries and prolonged treatment, leaving permanent sequelae such as limb loss, reduced vision, facial deformities, or impaired motor function. These sequelae not only affect physical health but also have a severe impact on the psychology, ability to learn, work, and reintegrate into the community of the victims, especially children and adolescents. Some children, despite receiving timely emergency care, may not fully recover their hand and eye functions, resulting in lifelong effects.

Doctors and authorities advise that preventing tragic accidents caused by homemade firecrackers requires the concerted efforts of families, schools, and society. Parents need to strengthen their management and supervision of their children; schools should intensify their efforts in disseminating information and educating the public on laws and accident prevention skills; and authorities need to strictly handle violations, especially in cyberspace. For young people, knowing how to say no to homemade firecrackers is not only about complying with the law, but also a practical way to protect their own lives, health, and the lives and health of their families and communities.

C.DAN

Source: https://baokhanhhoa.vn/xa-hoi/202601/hiem-hoa-tu-phao-no-tu-che-680105f/