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Perturbation in ambient particulate matter (PM1, PM2.5, PM10) and black carbon (BC) concentrations was studied during a firecracker bursting episode in Diwali (Festival of Lights) celebrations in Nagpur, India. Firecracker bursting resulted in greater escalation in fine particulates over coarse particulates while PM2.5 was found to be dominated by PM1 concentration. On the Diwali day, daily mean concentration of PM2.5 and PM10 exceeded Indian National Ambient Air Quality Standards by over 1.8 and 1.5 times, respectively, while daily mean BC concentration on the same day was almost two times higher than the previous day. The BC/PM1 ratio reduced remarkably from about 0.26 recorded before firecracker bursting activity to about 0.09 during firecracker bursting on Diwali night in spite of simultaneous escalation in ambient BC concentration. Such aberration in BC/PM1 was evidently a result of much higher escalation in PM1 than BC in ambient air during firecracker bursting. The study highlighted strong perturbations in ambient PM1, PM2.5, PM10 concentrations and BC/PM1 during the firecracker bursting episode. Altered atmospheric BC/PM1 ratios could serve as indicators of firecracker-polluted air and similar BC/PM1 ratios in local and regional air masses might be used as diagnostic ratios for firecracker smoke.

Baoji is a typical heavy industrial city in northwest China. Its air quality is greatly impacted by the emission from the factories. Elements in fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) that are greatly emitted from anthropogenic sources could pose diverse health impacts on humans. In this study, an online AMMS-100 atmospheric heavy metal analyzer was used to quantify 30 elements in PM 2.5 under the weak and strong anthropogenic disturbance scenarios before the city lockdown period (from January 9 th to 23 rd ) and the lockdown period (from January 26 th to February 9 th ) due to the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020. During the lockdown period, the average total concentration of total quantified elements was 3475.0 ng/m 3 , which was 28% and 33% lower than that of the week and strong anthropogenic disturbance scenarios during the pre-lockdown period. The greatest reductions were found for the elements of chromium (Cr), titanium (Ti), manganese (Mn), and Zinc (Zn), consistent with the industrial structure of Baoji. The mass concentrations of most elements showed obvious reductions when the government post-alerted the industries to reduce the operations and production. Dust, traffic sources, combustion, non-ferrous metal processing, and Ti-related industrial processing that are the contributors of the elements in the pre-lockdown period were apportioned by the positive matrix factorization (PMF) model. Substantial changes in the quantified elements' compositions and sources were found in the lockdown period. Health assessment was conducted and characterized by apportioned sources. The highest non-carcinogenic risk (HQ) was seen for Zn, demonstrating the high emissions from the related industrial activities. The concentration level of arsenic (As) exceeded the incremental lifetime carcinogenic risk (ILCR) in the lockdown period. This could be attributed to the traditional firework activities for the celebration of the Chinese New Year within the lockdown period., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Firework displays produce large amounts of particulate matter (PM), contributing to poor air quality in local areas. Since short-term exposure to particulate matter correlates with increased mortality risks, these celebrations may impact both human health and the environment. Little is known about the particulate matter produced from recreational fireworks, as most studies have focused on professional large-scale events. In New Zealand, it is common for consumer fireworks to be ignited within residential areas during the Guy Fawkes celebration around 5 November. To better understand the contribution of individual fireworks on local air quality, ambient PM 10 sampling was conducted in the 10 days surrounding Guy Fawkes Day in Auckland, New Zealand. These data were supplemented with measurements of firework emissions from 11 different individual products, including smoke bombs, sparklers, and Roman candles. Filter sampling results indicated that personal fireworks can contribute to ground level ambient air quality during celebrations, increasing ambient PM 10 concentrations by 21.6 μg m -3 over a 12-h sampling period. The use of personal fireworks can expose consumers to PM 10 concentrations much higher, up to 9.51 mg m -3 from individual sparkler use under worst-case scenario assumptions. The inhalation of sparkler emissions for just 8 min can lead to an exposure to PM 10 mass greater than that from daily recommended limits (50 μg m -3 exposure over 24 h). X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis indicated that potassium (K) and strontium (Sr) can be used as tracers for local firework use and that arsenic (As) may be an important contaminant during Guy Fawkes celebrations. The PM from personal fireworks contained large amounts of chlorine (Cl), which may be indicative of perchlorate oxidizers. In addition, lead (Pb) was observed in the PM generated from two of the colored sparklers, which were marketed as "safer" alternatives to more explosive firework products.

Purpose: The clinical impact of firework-related genitourinary trauma remains unknown. In this study, we aim to characterize injury patterns, interventions, and clinical outcomes of firework-related genitourinary injuries and evaluate the relationship with certain firework types., Methods: A retrospective case series was conducted for patients treated at a level I trauma center from 2005 to 2019 who experienced firework-related genitourinary trauma. Fifteen patients sustained firework-related genitourinary injuries. Injury patterns, operative interventions, clinical outcomes, as well as details of firework type were examined., Results: Firework-related genitourinary injuries were identified in 15 trauma patients. Mean age was 29.7 years (± 14.3, standard deviation), all (100%) patients were male, and most (11; 73.3%) were Caucasian. Average length of stay (LOS) was 10.5 days, and 4 (26.7%) patients required ICU admission. Ten (66.7%) patients underwent 28 operative interventions (mean 1.9 per patient), 7 (46.7%) of whom underwent 15 urologic specific intervention (mean 1.0 per patient). No injury-related deaths occurred. Considering firework type, 10 (66.7%) patients had mortar or shell-related injuries, while 3 (20.0%) involved firecrackers, and 2 (13.3%) involved bottle rockets. All (100%) patients sustained injuries that occurred with the use of legally obtained fireworks and 11 (73.3%) were active users., Conclusions: Firework-related genitourinary injuries occurred most frequently in young men, lead to polytrauma with the scrotum and penis being the most common urologic sites, had high operative rates, and were most commonly associated with legally obtained fireworks, specifically mortar and shell fireworks. Further investigation is needed to understand the long-term sequelae of these injuries.