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Bonfire night basics

Mother-of-four Lucy Hines guides us through the essentials of Bonfire night safety and the Fireworks Code

Stars in the frosty night sky, piping hot baked potatoes, and the delighted gasps of children as golden fireworks explode in the heavens - there's nothing quite like the magic of Bonfire Night.

As a child, November 5th was always one of my favourite nights of the year, and even now, as an exhausted 31-year-old mother of four, it still holds all the excitement for me that it ever did. The roaring heat of the bonfire on my bitterly cold cheeks, the smell hanging in the air of burning wood and gunpowder - and, most of all, the fireworks. The beautiful, cascading fireworks that even now transport me back to childhood.

Hand in hand, I stand with my children - at least, the ones that aren't too old and cool to hold my hand any more - as the November blackness above us is transformed into a riot of red and green, showering burning sparks like rain.

Like Halloween, Guy Fawkes Night also signals the beginning of the wonderful countdown to Christmas, and it's the one evening of the year when I really feel like a child again. Kind of like Christmas, but without having to peel all those potatoes.

But this November 5th, take care that all that magic doesn't turn into a nightmare. Because unlike birthdays and Christmas, Bonfire Night has a dark and dangerous side. Last year, the total number of firework injuries in the UK increased by 40 per cent, with 1,362 recorded incidents. There was also a rise in the number of children under five injured by sparklers - the firework most likely to cause them harm. A simple sparkler can reach temperatures of 2,000 degrees centigrade - that's 15 times the boiling point of water.

Public displays
Many authorities now advise that the safest way to enjoy Guy Fawkes Night is at an organised public display. In 2001, four times as many people were injured by fireworks at private parties than at large public displays. The entry tickets will be cheaper than buying your own (often extortionately-priced) fireworks, the public display will inevitably be much more impressive than your own rather pathetic damp squibs?and you won't have to work all day chopping up cabbage for the homemade coleslaw.

If you're attending a public display, it's a good idea to take a torch and, if possible, make sure the youngsters are wearing brightly coloured or reflective coats, in case they get lost in the dark. Wrap the children - and yourselves - up warm. The chill of a November evening can take you by surprise if you haven't been out at night for a while, and you'll all have a lousy time if you have to spend two hours listening to your five-year-old loudly complaining about being too cold.

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