CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Fireworks aren't just illegal inside city limits, they can also send you to the emergency room if they're not used properly.
Corpus Christi Medical Center Bay Area Hospital expects its emergency rooms to see a lot of people with fireworks related injuries over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Officials with the hospital said they've seen a 25 percent increase in those types of injuries over the past 15 years.
Burn injuries are common, but fireworks can cause much more serious damage.
"We've seen injuries to the face, we've seen traumatic brain injuries as a result of mishandling fireworks," June Ness-Delgado, director of Trauma at C.C. Medical Center Bay Area, said. "As a Level 2 trauma center, Bay Area is prepared to take care of all those injuries."
You can reduce your risk of injuries if you just follow the instructions on the package of fireworks.
Fireworks aren't the only thing that could land you in the hospital during the holiday.
Heat stroke or heat exhaustion are another health risk this time of the year.
Pool and/or beach related accidents are also a big risk during the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
