so many websites out there to help you find inspiration for your wedding, you’ve probably seen several great photos with guests holding sparklers. Probably the most common picture are those of a couple’s grand exit with rows of guests holding lit sparklers on both sides of them as they make their way towards their limo. Though these photos are very enchanting, there are several safety concerns surrounding sparklers that you should carefully consider before you decide to have them at your wedding.
Did you know that sparklers are responsible for more firework injuries than all other types of fireworks combined? It may seem a little shocking at first since they are the most common firework and many people hand them to children, but the very fact that you hold them in your hands is why sparklers are so dangerous. Most notably, sparklers burn at over 1200 degrees Fahrenheit and all it takes is one slip or one careless act to cause a severe injury to you or one of your wedding guests. Some companies even sell incredibly cheap sparklers that have been known to fall apart or even explode, and that makes the risks even higher.
Many of you may be thinking “but I’ve used sparklers all of my life without any issues, how could they really be so dangerous?” I urge you to bear in mind that most of the time when people are using sparklers, they are in an outdoor area where there is plenty of room and people are spaced out so they don’t accidentally injure one another. At a wedding there are going to be a lot more people, sometimes several hundred, that will be holding lit sparklers and they will all be moving around with a mind of their own. Grouping this many people holding sparklers in a confined space is a recipe for disaster and can quickly lead to a very terrible outcome.
However, despite the obvious safety risks that having sparklers at your wedding can impose, many people still decide to include them as part of their celebration. If you are in that mindset, there are a few things that you can do to improve your odds of having an incident-free wedding. First, make sure you buy genuine wedding sparklers from a reputable source rather than the cheapest ones that you can find. Buying genuine wedding sparklers will ensure that your sparklers are constructed well and will eliminate the risk of them falling apart or exploding. Second, you need give your guests a quick crash course in wedding sparkler etiquette. Tell them that they need to be aware of their surroundings and that they need to be responsible for where they place their sparklers in relation to other people. Lastly, you should never give sparklers to children at your wedding. This will eliminate much of the careless behavior that leads to accidents and injuries.
As beautiful as sparklers can be at your wedding, the safety issues that they raise can make them more trouble than they are worth. However, if you plan to use wedding sparklers anyways, make sure you buy the correct type and educate your guests on safety before they light them. An ounce of prevention is always worth a pound of cure; especially at your wedding.
