This weekend, both my parents and wife’s parents are coming to town to not only visit their grandchildren, but also discover the allure of Covington’s renowned Fourth of July celebration.

What this means for me is no need to go out and purchase any fireworks, which feels a bit odd considering I’ve done so nearly every other year. But at least I won’t have to worry about blowing off any fingers.

On that note, for our friends planning to shoot off their own fireworks this year —whether in addition to or instead of attending local celebrations —I encourage you to do so with plenty of caution, regardless of how long you’ve been doing it. 

Not only can accidents happen, but they can happen to anyone. And accidents with fireworks tend to significantly increase around the months of June and July — odd, right?

In a 2019 study conducted by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, “fireworks were involved with an estimated 10,000 injuries treated in U.S. hospital emergency departments during calendar year 2019.”

And during a one-month special study period between June 21, 2019, and July 21, 2019, data showed that’s when roughly 73% of the fireworks-related injuries happened. About 66% of those injuries were to males, and the remaining 34% were to females.

And the final measure of this study I’ll leave you with: Children younger than 15 years of age accounted for 36% of the estimated fireworks-related injuries.

If letting your kids get involved with the celebration, remember to keep a close eye on them and never assume they know what they’re doing.

On behalf of The Covington News staff, I hope everyone enjoys a fantastic and safe Fourth of July weekend, filled with lots of great food, fireworks and fun.

Taylor Beck is editor and publisher of The News. He may be reached at tbeck@covnews.com.