It's time to light up the night again, to commemorate America's Independence Day. That means fireworks shows from professionally staged productions to enthusiastic do-it-yourselfers.

If you opt for the latter, please, please make sure you won't be visiting the emergency room. Last year from June 21 through July 21, 240 people went to the ER every day with fireworks-related injuries, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reports. Burns, not surprisingly, accounted for 62% of the injuries.

To ensure a harmless holiday, first find out what fireworks are permitted in your state. Some states allow consumer fireworks such as sparklers and firecrackers. Others allow only novelty items, such as ground spinners, snakes and fountains. A few ban all fireworks.^[1]

Then confirm whether it's OK to light fireworks where you plan to. For example, if I buy fireworks in the city I grew up, where they're legal, but set them off in the city I now live in, where they're not, I'd be in hot water.

Finally, follow these safety tips offered by the CPSC:

Don't allow young children to play with or ignite fireworks. They can suffer injuries from sparklers, which burn at temperatures of about 2,000 degrees – hot enough to melt some metals.
Don't buy fireworks packaged in brown paper. This is often a sign that the fireworks were made for professional displays and could pose a danger to consumers.
Make sure an adult supervises fireworks activities.
Set off fireworks away from people, homes, dry leaves, grass and other flammable materials.
Never have any part of your body directly over a firework while lighting the fuse. Back up immediately to a safe distance after the fuse is lit.
Keep a bucket of water or a garden hose nearby in case of fire or for dousing fireworks.
Never try to relight or pick up fireworks that haven't ignited fully. Soak them with water and throw them away.
Never point or throw fireworks at another person.
Never carry fireworks in a pocket or shoot them off in metal or glass containers.
Don't experiment with homemade fireworks.