Fire brigade warning for those celebrating this Halloween

The fire brigade have issued a public reminder over the dangers posed by fireworks, as Halloween draws near.

The service said that last Halloween night, October 31, 2015, it attended 113 incidents across Northern Ireland – an increase of 11% on the previous year.

In addition, it said 15 people attended A&E departments with firework-related injuries, of whom 13 were aged under 18.

Ahead of Halloween this year, which falls on Monday, October 31, the service said: “Make sure that children are properly supervised at all times; keep them away from fireworks, or open flames such as candles, pumpkins with candles in them and bonfires.”

It called on people to ensure “it’s a night for treats not tragedies”.

It also added that it is compulsory for anyone wishing to buy or use fireworks to obtain a licence.

The fee for a Fireworks Licence is £30 (if under 100 people attending), and application forms can be obtained from www.nidirect.gov.uk (search ‘fireworks’).

Only buy fireworks marked with a CE mark – this shows fireworks meet European Safety Standards.