Let old flares off on Bonfire night ?

[ShipsWoofy]

Behave Mike, you can't keep dogs indoors for 4 weeks up to and 4 weeks after Nov 5, and someones birthday, and passing exams, and buying a new car and what ever other excuse now for setting the things off.

Ban them I say!

 

[Andrew_Fanner]

Fireworks: were there this number of grousers and complainers 10 years ago, 20 years ago, 30 years ago?

What has changed?

Football probably causes more misery, distress, annoyance and work for the emergency services every weekend for over half the year.

My children have been brought up not to fool with fireworks or throw them about, even if Daddy does chuck smoke bombs and thunderflashes around at permissible moments in permissible places, none of which are at home. Likewise making your own is forbidden, unless you are being supervised by Daddy, and only then for the annual Bonfire Night do. I'm not very into New Year fireworks.

400th anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot to celebrate, after all, it was illegal not to for centuries.

 

[brianrunyard]

A friend of mine tried it a few years ago.
The parachute didn't open on one so it hit the ground still burning, luckily in the middle of a field. The second one came down too quickly as was still burning when it landed on the roof of a caravan. I've never seen him move so fast, we still don't know how he managed to get onto the caravan so quickly and kick the flare away.
So my advice is don't let off out of date flares, hand them to the Coast Guard.

 

[Jae]

Don't do it. You will be letting off old flares that may not work properly, anecdotes prove this here.
The fact that so many have experienced failures of old flares just goes to prove that you should renew them at expiry, there are good reasons for this, not just to get you to buy new ones. Break the cost down to per year, or per trip out. It is much much cheaper than you think.
What price safety?

 

[Will33]

Just seen an article in our local paper with the MCA and local coastguard urging people not to let off old flares in place of fireworks!! So if you are in the North Suffolk area this seems reasonable advice.

Will

 

[meddite]

[ QUOTE ]

My children have been brought up not to fool with fireworks or throw them about

[/ QUOTE ]

Good for you. But for gawds sake don't take them to France on Bastille Day if you want them to maintain their good habits.
In Cherbourg some years back we encountered dozens of kids (and adults) throwing bangers at whoever passed. The worst example was a madamoiselle who couldn't have been more than five years old, chucking a thunderflash at our feet. Dad had obligingly lit it for her from his Gauloise! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

 

[DAKA]

Thanks, although not sure if the Flares/Rockets are really the safer option, after all they are designed to be hand held.
I ve just bought some Fireworks and after telling the shop I only have a smallish garden so want smallish fireworks I was sold a huge bl***y great thing.

They said it was safer to let one big one off than several little ones.

This is 3 ft tall and too thick to be carried under your arm.

Needs to be buried 1ft deep and you have to stand 25 meters away !


<span style="color:#666666"> </span> Dont worry Squirrels I will put a sign up warning people with guide dogs to walk the other side of the road.

 

[Oldhand]

Are trying to make us all look fools by asking this question? Don't you ever listen to or read about all the problems that red flare reports cause? Any one letting off distress pyrotechnics outside a formally organised and notified demonstration/trial or for the purpose of indicating a real distress is an imbecile.

 

[Rustyknight]

We were in Caen for Bastille day a couple of years ago. It was certainly an eye opener......

Guys selling fireworks from the backs of vans and roadside stalls with the oligatry Gauloises hanging from the bottom lip. Every so often they'd take a firework off the stall, light the fuse, and then lob it at passers by or behing their stall..... probably as a bit of advertising!

Kids of 4 or 5 throwing bangers at each other, and even firing hand held rockets all over the place......

I loved it! /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[ShipsWoofy]

They have got louder and kids can afford to buy better ones all over the two month Guy Fawkes celebrations.

Right now with Beirut outside the window, my dog is shivering under my seat, though his mum would get much worse. If we went out at this time of year and the little darlings started setting off fireworks, she would climb into the kitchen cupboards and start chewing the central heating pipes..... Countless times I cam home in October / November to a drained system and soaked kitchen!

I do not find this time of year funny, nor the people on here telling me I am being over sensitive, we can't go out, the dog is a mess and the household is throughly miserable!

 

[meddite]

I've just recalled other fireworks incidents whilst on board. We saw a fantastic Bastille display organised by the local authority on Ile d'Yeu, about three years ago. Lasted about 25 minutes. The mortars and other gizmos had been set up by the display team on the North pier. Problem was, the wind got up and shifted by the time the display started and the fallout from the pyros cascaded all over the marina.
Next morning our white GRP deck was covered in yellow burn stains and loads of black debris. Fortunately it all cleaned off.
Others weren't so lucky. Damage included black burns to teak decks, scorched inflatables, and holed covers.
To give the authorities credit, the next morning there were gendarmes and marina staff visiting every boat, taking damage statements from the crews where necessary, presumably teeing up for any compensation claims.
We left the next day so don't know what the outcome was.
If there are pyros going off anywhere near the boat, and we're on board, we now make sure the bucket's handy.