Hyderabad: With the cloud of Covid-19 pandemic hanging over Diwali celebrations, ophthalmologists in Hyderabad have urged families to be cautious if they decide to celebrate by lighting firecrackers. The eye-care specialists said that taking basic safety measures will go a long way in avoiding serious damage to eyes during lighting of the firecrackers.
Dr Muralidhar Ramappa, senior cornea specialist, LVPEI said that children must be supervised by adults when lighting firecrackers. Apart from urging people to avoid mass gatherings, public health officials have urged families to continue to take precautions like wearing masks, hand hygiene and maintaining physical distancing.
Stay safe
Do’s
• Buy fireworks only from authorised manufacturers. Dry them in the sun for 2 days.
• Store them in cardboard boxes out of the reach of children and away from inflammable material such as a gas cylinder or oil can
• Never leave children alone while playing with firecrackers.
• Only one person should light a firecracker at a time; others should watch from a safe distance.
• Light crackers in an open area.
• Always use a long candle or phuljhari for lighting crackers.
• Keep two buckets of water handy. In case of burns, pour lots of water on the affected area.
• For major burns, after putting out the fire, wrap the victim in a clean bedsheet and rush to a hospital.
• Always use a protective shatter proof googles while bursting firecrackers
Don’ts
• Light crackers while holding them in your hand.
• Bend over the crackers while lighting them.
• Light crackers inside a container, like a bottle, tin can or overturned pot. This can be very dangerous.
• Wait for a while before approaching crackers that do not light immediately.
• Store them near burning candles, diyas or agarbathis.
• Wear synthetic clothes; wear only thick cotton clothes, when lighting crackers.
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