Toledo man’s death illustrates fireworks danger

COLUMBUS – Just as Ohio officials were delivering their annual warning about the hazards of shooting off bottle rockets and other illegal explosives to celebrate the Independence Day holiday, the death of a Toledo man provided an unfortunate illustration of their point.

Police say a 61-year-old man shooting off fireworks in his yard died after a mortar exploded in his chest, reportedly in front of a group of children.

They say Floyd Temple had been putting on a fireworks display for the neighborhood and that one of the mortars tipped over and hit him in the chest.

Witnesses told media outlets in Toledo that several children witnessed the accident Tuesday.

Ohio is among the four safest states for fireworks-related injuries, thanks to its strict ban, but Sherry Williams, president and CEO of Prevent Blindness Ohio, worries about attempts to lift that prohibition.

“There have been many attempts over the years to legalize consumer discharge of fireworks, the latest now being considered by General Assembly,” she said.

Two bills in the Ohio House and Senate have not received votes.

Sparklers, snaps, and other trick and novelty fireworks are the only kind that can be discharged legally in Ohio without a license.

Bottle rockets, mortars and firecrackers carry a far greater risk of fire and personal injury, State Fire Marshal Jeff Hussey said Tuesday, citing Temple’s death as an example.

“Within the last 24 hours, we’ve had one fatality in the state based on consumer use of fireworks in an illegal setting,” Hussey told reporters. “Every year, we see half a dozen to a dozen significant injuries, loss of eyes or body parts, because of illegal use of fireworks.”

Roughly 9,100 people in the U.S. were treated at emergency rooms for fireworks-related injuries in 2018.