Statewide Iowa — Iowans are warned every Fourth of July about the risks of losing fingers or hands to fireworks, but explosives can also do serious damage to eyesight and cause blindness.
Dr. Rao Chundury, an ophthalmologist at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, says they treated dozens of people who came through the emergency room last Independence Day.
Some fireworks, including sparklers, can burn at temperatures up to 2200 degrees. Even brief contact with the delicate tissues of the eye can cause devastating burns. The injuries are preventable, and he urges Iowans to wear safety glasses to protect the eyes when using fireworks.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission reports fireworks are involved in more than 15,000 injuries treated in US emergency rooms every year, and about 15 percent of those injuries involve the eyes.
