Could low noise fireworks be the future for Bonfire Night

Ten million people buy fireworks in the UK each year and 14 million people attend displays, with professional events turning over around £13.4m.

While Bonfire Night has been celebrated since Guy Fawkes's foiled gunpowder plot in 1605, there are always plenty of pet owners, pensioners and parents of young children who dread the noisy evening. 

Fireworks at Cromer Pier (Image: Supplied) But the region's retailers say fireworks are changing.

New low noise fireworks, designed to minimise loud explosions in favour of vibrant colours and mesmerising effects, are becoming increasingly popular. 

Chris Bell, owner of Norfolk Fireworks Ltd in Stalham, claims to stock the region's largest selection of low noise fireworks. 

More than a third of the fireworks he sells are now low noise.

He has even supplied his low noise fireworks to care homes wanting to put on displays for their residents. 

Chris Bell, owner of Norfolk Fireworks Ltd in Stalham, with a selection of fireworks (Image: Denise Bradley) “We’re seeing more and more petitions to ban fireworks, but in recent years there has been growing demand for low noise fireworks,” Mr Bell said.

“The bulk of my business is still traditional fireworks - big and loud - but there has certainly been an increase in people wanting low noise options.

“There are lots of different effects in fireworks now, and we’re noticing more vivid, vibrant colours, which can be just as impressive as traditional loud fireworks.

“My best-selling selection box last year was a low noise family box called Serene. I had one customer who spent nearly £500 on low noise fireworks alone.

Norfolk Fireworks Ltd's best-selling flow noise firework bundle, Serene (Image: Denise Bradley) “Some people will still come to me and say, ‘what’s your loudest firework’, but others won’t do fireworks at all because they’re too worried about upsetting their neighbours.

“I have even had several orders from local care homes who want to put on displays for their residents. It wouldn’t have been appropriate to have loud fireworks, so they purchased low noise ones instead.”

A selection of fireworks sold at Norfolk Fireworks Ltd (Image: Denise Bradley) Jake Fields, owner of Inferno Fireworks in Lowestoft, said although low noise fireworks have become more popular in recent years they still only account for around 5pc of his sales. 

"They will probably be the future, unfortunately," he said. "As a traditional firework shop I hope it's not the case.

Jake Fields, owner of Inferno Fireworks in Lowestoft (Image: Supplied) "Often, of the people who come in to purchase low noise fireworks, nine time out of ten they end up buying bigger ones.

"Even if they made it law that you could only set fireworks off a few days a year it would still be better than banning them entirely.

"The trouble is, when you sell fireworks you can't really control what people do with them. Most of the time people are sensible."

Inferno Fireworks in Lowestoft (Image: Supplied) Almost half of all fireworks sold in the UK are purchased at supermarkets.

The big chains often advertise fireworks as silent, but Mr Bell says completely silent fireworks do not exist.

"There is a common misconception about silent fireworks, and supermarkets have previously advertised fireworks as silent but there is no such thing," he said. 

"You need a lift charge to launch fireworks into the sky, which will always create noise."

Chris Bell, owner of Norfolk Fireworks in Stalham (Image: Denise Bradley) However, anti-firework campaigners are not convinced that low noise fireworks are a solution. 

Fire and rescue services in England attend more than 300 fires every year that are known to be caused by fireworks.

35pc more dogs and 22pc more cats are also reported missing on Bonfire Night than any other night of the year, with 366 horses being killed or injured in firework-related incidents since 2010.

Julie Doorne founded The Firework Campaign, the UK’s largest anti-firework campaign, after the horse she had owned for 18 years had to be put to sleep as a direct result of her neighbours letting off fireworks nearby.  

She said she begged them not to set off fireworks over her stables, but they carried on anyway. This led her terrified horse to run blindly through a solid wooden fence. 

Mrs Doorne found her horse lying in the road, with devastating injuries which left an emergency vet with no choice but to put the creature to death. 

The Firework Campaign is calling to change current legislation so there can be more control over the use of fireworks.

Julie Doorne, founder of The Firework Campaign (Image: Supplied) “The firework fraternities say we are the most regulated country ever when it comes to fireworks, but once they’re sold and they’re in the hands of the public - that’s it," she said.

"There’s no way of policing the rules. It’s the unexpected use of them that is the issue.

“And it’s not just about animals. We’ve been contacted by people with cerebral palsy who have uncontrollable startled reflexes to fireworks where their muscles go into a spasm.

"We hear from veterans suffering from PTSD and even women who have been rape victims. Fibromyalgia is another condition that can be worsened by a shock from loud noises.

"People with hearing aids also suffer. One woman told us her husband takes his hearing aid out between October and February. 

“We used to keep the dog in for a couple of weeks around the time of Bonfire Night. Now fireworks start earlier and go on longer. You never know when they’re going to be set off.

“We’re calling for licensing to buy and use fireworks.”

Mr Bell said a ban on fireworks could lead to an influx of illegal, untested fireworks being sold on the black market, leading to misuse. 

“There's no need for a blanket ban," he said. 

"If we did see a ban it would just increase the likelihood of illegal fireworks being sold on the black market. They wouldn’t be safe as currently they have to go through so many safety protocols through testing.

"Fireworks have been around for thousands of years. It’s a tradition not just for Bonfire Night but religious festivals and celebrations.

"I’m a firework enthusiast. I’ve been around fireworks all my life. They’re as safe as anything.

"It’s like anything - a weapon is safe until you put it in the wrong hands.

"It’s the same with fireworks, they're perfectly safe but if they're misused they then become dangerous."

Fireworks (Image: Supplied)

LAWS AROUND FIREWORKS

You cannot buy ‘adult’ fireworks if you are under the age of 18. Adult fireworks are category 2 and 3 fireworks, and do not include things such as sparklers, party poppers and sky lanterns.

Category 4 fireworks can only be used by professionals.

It is against the law to set off fireworks between 11pm and 7am, except on certain occasions:

• Bonfire Night, when the cut off is midnight
• New Year’s Eve, Diwali and Chinese New Year, when the cut off is 1am

It is illegal to set off or throw fireworks in the street or other public places.

You can only buy fireworks from registered sellers for private use between certain dates:

• October 15 to November 10
• December 26 to 31
• Three days before Diwali and Chinese New Year
• At all other times you can only buy fireworks from licensed shops.

You can be fined an unlimited amount and imprisoned for up to six months for selling or using fireworks illegally.

You could also get an on-the-spot fine of £90.