Gardai seize major caches of illegal fireworks

In the run-up to Halloween, gardaí have seized several major caches of illegal fireworks throughout the State.

These fireworks have been stockpiled at a Dublin barracks and are being prepared for destruction by the Army's Ordnance Corps.

One of the Army's top bomb disposal officers told The Irish Times that some of the fireworks freely available on the streets of Ireland and in use throughout the country tonight are highly unstable and extremely dangerous to both children and adults alike.

Referring principally to Chinese-manufactured fireworks and fireworks of eastern European origin that do not carry the UK or CE (European Community) safety-standard markings, one officer commented that "these devices ought to be destroyed as a priority given the risk they pose to the hands, eyes and other soft tissues of young children".

Even the most modest of these fireworks, classified as Category 2 fireworks - intended for use in a confined outdoor space - such as "Black Cat" bangers or small flares are considered by Defence Forces explosive experts to be "highly unstable, highly unpredictable and potentially lethal in the hands of a child".

Shoddy manufacturing processes and non-existent quality or safety assurance measures among substandard fireworks means that the all-important "fuze timing" - the length of time between lighting the touch-paper of a firework and its subsequent detonation - are inconsistent and cannot be predicted.

This has led to a situation where unsuspecting adults and children alike annually suffer catastrophic injuries to fingers, hands and eyes arising from the instantaneous detonation of illegal fireworks.

It is not only the substandard fireworks that pose a threat. Ordnance officers point out that the misuse and incorrect storage of illegally imported British and European fireworks - despite being manufactured to rigorous European Union standards - is highly dangerous.

All such fireworks, particularly Category 3 and Category 4 devices - encompassing the type of sky-rockets typically detonated in gardens and the larger pyrotechnics used in professional licensed displays - contain large amounts of low explosives.

Such explosives are direct derivatives of gunpowder and are broadly similar to the ignition and propellant charges used in conventional military projectiles and weapon systems.

As such, they are highly combustible and whilst not in the same league as "higher order" explosives such as plastic explosives - they can produce sufficient explosive power when detonated in a confined space so as to produce shrapnel and the type of laceration and burn injuries associated with conventional military armaments.

Illegally imported, such fireworks are often stored in large quantities - in conditions very much at variance from industry recommended norms and requirements - for example in the garages and lofts of suburban homes and often crammed into metal containers on articulated trucks.

Explosive experts are concerned about what might happen in these circumstances if such fireworks were exposed to naked flame or excessive heat. The simultaneous detonation or burning of fireworks - particularly within a confined space - would generate sufficient explosive power to produce the shrapnel and shot effect one would normally associate with conventional military munitions.

The Government faces a dilemma. If it legalises the importation and sale of such fireworks they may help prevent such a catastrophe at the hands of rogue traders.

On the other hand however, statistics show that Ireland and Greece - the only EU member states where fireworks are banned - share the lowest firework-related injury rates throughout the EU.