Fireworks Are Fun but Sometimes Deadly

July 4, 2007 — -- For many Americans, Independence Day means a fireworks celebration. But the fun of such celebrations can quickly turn into danger as it did Monday for one Michigan mother.

Danialle Barse, 27, was killed in front of her young child and her fiancé while shooting off professional-grade fireworks without a license.

But even the smallest fireworks carry some danger.

Last year 11 people died, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. It estimates more than 9,000 people were treated in emergency rooms for fireworks injuries.

One family is using its own tragedy to warn other families of the risk.

Three-year-old Michael Shannon loved music and his family. But while celebrating the Fourth of July with his loved ones, tragedy struck.

"The evening was to end with a fireworks display to celebrate the Fourth of July," said Michael's mother, Robin Shannon.

But the final fireworks in the show tipped over and hit Michael in the head.

"He was standing between my legs," said Michael's father, Jack Shannon. "There was nothing that I could do to help."

He died the next morning. Now Michael's mother and father are trying to save other parents from suffering the pain and grief they've endured. They're appearing in a video, which warns about the dangers of fireworks.

"There is no safe use of consumer fireworks by the public," National Fire Protection Association Assistant Vice President Guy Colonna said.

According to the NFPA, more fires are reported on July Fourth than any other day of the year, and fireworks account for half of those blazes. The association said consumers shouldn't handle any fireworks.