WorkSafe warns of deadly risks from illegal fireworks
31 Dec 2024•BlueSafe Team•Source: WorkSafe VIC
WorkSafe Victoria has warned about the dangers of unauthorised fireworks following the death of a teenager at Kalkallo. Emergency services have also highlighted the risk of serious injuries and fires during summer.
Fireworks are classified as explosives in Victoria, and only licensed pyrotechnicians can legally buy or use them, including on private property. Anyone illegally selling, buying or using fireworks can face fines of thousands of dollars or imprisonment under the Dangerous Goods Act.
WorkSafe Executive Director of Health and Safety Sam Jenkin said the teenager's death the previous week showed how dangerous fireworks could be in untrained hands. "We continue to see serious incidents involving unauthorised fireworks every year, particularly over the summer period, and the few moments of entertainment they provide is simply not worth the potential catastrophic consequences," Mr Jenkin said.
WorkSafe destroyed 14,215 individual fireworks weighing more than 470 kilograms in 2024. It has also collected a further 7,962 fireworks handed in or seized by Victoria Police.
Fire Rescue Victoria Deputy Commissioner Community Safety Joshua Fischer said firefighters faced an increase in illegal fireworks incidents each summer. "The illegal use of fireworks is not only a danger to the people using them and those nearby – they could start a grass and scrub fire, destroy property and even cause a bushfire."
CFA Chief Officer Jason Heffernan said crews attended 50 incidents involving unauthorised fireworks, firecrackers, flares and similar items across Victoria during the past financial year. More than half resulted in a vegetation fire. "These figures are a stark reminder of the dangers fireworks pose, particularly as we head into a summer of heightened fire risk," CO Heffernan said.
CO Heffernan urged people to remain vigilant and avoid behaviour that could start fires, pointing to fire activity already seen across Victoria. He asked anyone considering using fireworks illegally to think about the risks to loved ones, neighbours and their communities.
Monash University's Victorian Injury Surveillance Unit recorded 244 fireworks-related presentations at Victorian hospital emergency departments in the ten years to June 2023. More than 80 per cent were males, and almost a third required admission for further treatment. Burns were the most common injury, with 112 cases, followed by 36 eye injuries and 26 open wounds.
Information about the sale or illegal use of fireworks can be reported to Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or through a confidential online crime report.