John Adams, America’s second president, first suggested Independence Day be celebrated with “illuminations from one end of this continent to the other” — but the folks who put out fires and treat burn victims in Salt Lake City would rather the average Utahn leave fireworks alone.
“Our professional sentiment is to let the professionals light the fireworks,” said Brad Wiggins, nurse manager at the University of Utah Health Burn Center.
Wiggins was on hand Wednesday when two captains of the Salt Lake City Fire Department demonstrated the amount of heat generated by a sparkler — often the one firework parents let small children hold.