Hazards cloud Independence Day

USA TODAY, July, 2005 by Patrick O'Driscoll

More Americans will set off fireworks, go boating or barbecue this Independence Day than on any other holiday or weekend all year.

More of them are likely to end up in hospital emergency rooms this weekend, too, say the federal agencies that monitor mishaps around these Fourth of July traditions.

The annual numbers of accidents and injuries from fireworks, boat trips and backyard cookouts fluctuate year to year but generally are unchanged or even declining as more aggressive safety programs take root. But the hazards are real for thousands of holiday victims.

Last year, about 15,700 people were hurt in accidents with charcoal or gas grills, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Fireworks killed eight people and injured 9,600 in 2004, the commission says. More than 5,400 boating accidents caused 703 deaths and injured nearly 3,900 in 2003, the latest year statistics are available from the Coast Guard. Both ...