EDITORIAL: Celebrate safely this July 4th
This coming Friday, families, friends and neighbors across the country will gather together to celebrate the Fourth of July.
Over that holiday weekend, Americans will spend an estimated $4 billion on beer and wine, and another $2.7 billion on fireworks, according to the finance site WalletHub.
While both are designed to be fun, they can also be dangerous.
Did you know that sparklers burn at about 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit?
The office of Pennsylvania State Fire Commissioner Tom Cook, which supplied that information, compared the heat generated from a sparkler to that of a blowtorch.
Despite the popularity of sparklers – and the impression they are “child friendly” – the commission advises against letting the little ones handle any fireworks at all.
Adults should exercise caution, too, and not mix the celebratory explosives with alcohol or other drugs, which can lead to another set of problems.
Last year across Pennsylvania, state police investigated 774 crashes that resulted in 11 fatalities between July 3 and 7. Some of those crashes involved drunken or otherwise impaired drivers injuring themselves in a crash; others involved those drivers causing crashes that injured innocent people.
As part of a statewide campaign, both state and local police will try to reduce those numbers by conducting checkpoints and patrols looking for impaired drivers throughout the holiday weekend. Those planning to celebrate on the water can also expect increased enforcement. As part of “Operation Dry Water,” state Fish and Boat Commission officials patrol the state’s waterways and can arrest people for boating under the influence.
Even if impaired drivers don’t injure someone else with their recklessness, the literal cost of driving under the influence goes beyond being criminally charged.
According to the state Department of Transportation, fines can range from $300 to $10,000 depending on the intoxication level and number of offenses. A lawyer can run upward of $2,000, often determined by how serious the case is. Court costs, education and treatment run upward of $1,000.
Oh, and a DUI offense comes with a license suspension. The length of that suspension depends largely on how intoxicated the person is, though there are other factors.
That means you can expect an increase in your insurance premium or a cancellation of the policy.
No one is suggesting your July 4 has to be boring; just keep in mind that the actions you choose to take have consequences.
Celebrate our country’s independence, but do so safely.