Orlando surgeon prepares for busy weekend of blast injuries
THIS WEEKEND, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WILL BE SETTING OFF FIREWORKS AND NOT EVERYONE WILL DO IT SAFELY. ORLANDO HOSPITALS ARE PREPARING TO TREAT INFLUX OF BURN AND BLAST INJURIES OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS. JOINING ME LIVE NOW THIS MORNING IS ORLANDO HEALTH HAND SURGEON DOCTOR MINH NGUYEN. DOC, THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US. THIS IS SUCH AN IMPORTANT TOPIC. THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME. ABSOLUTELY. OKAY. SO YOU’RE GOING TO BE ON CALL THIS WEEKEND AT ORMC. WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON INJURIES THAT YOU GET CALLED IN TO TREAT ON A WEEKEND LIKE THIS? SURE. THE MOST COMMON INJURIES INCLUDE BURNS AND BLAST INJURIES, WHICH CAUSE DAMAGE TO SKIN, NERVES, TENDONS, BONES AND EVEN RESULT IN AMPUTATIONS. OH, IT’S SO AWFUL WHEN YOU HEAR THAT, BECAUSE I KNOW THAT THERE’S A LOT OF TIMES CAN START AS JUST TRYING TO HAVE A GOOD TIME AND THROW A PARTY. BUT DOC, WHAT WOULD WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON TYPES OF FIREWORKS THAT YOU’RE SEEING WITH INJURIES? IS IT SPARKLERS, FIREWORKS AT HOME? FILL OUR VIEWERS IN? ABSOLUTELY. I SEE EVERYTHING FROM SPARKLERS, WHICH CAN BURN AT EVEN UP TO 1200 DEGREES, WHICH CAN MELT METAL. I SEE INJURIES THAT ARE FROM FIREWORKS MADE AT HOME. I ALSO SEE FIREWORK INJURIES FROM COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE FIREWORKS THAT PEOPLE BUY. SO WHAT FACTORS TYPICALLY IMPACT THE NUMBER OF FIREWORKS INJURIES THAT COME INTO ORMC? IT’S USUALLY THE WEATHER AS WELL AS WHEN THE 4TH OF JULY. LAND IS ON. IT’S ON THE WEEKEND, SO IT’S USUALLY A BUSY WEEKEND. SO ARE YOU. I WAS GOING TO SAY, SO THIS ONE IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE VERY BUSY CONSIDERING IT’S ON A SATURDAY. I SUSPECT SO. OKAY, SO WHAT’S YOUR ADVICE THEN TO PEOPLE WHO WANT TO SET OFF FIREWORKS? ESPECIALLY IF THEY DO SO AT HOME? WHAT’S YOUR SAFETY TIPS TO THEM? SURE. I MY BEST ADVICE IS TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE FIRST AID, AS WELL AS WATER BUCKETS AND HOSES AVAILABLE. NEVER RELIGHT A DUD. NEVER HANDLE A LIT FIREWORK. AND REALLY, THE BEST ADVICE IS TRULY TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU SUPERVISE CHILDREN AS WELL AS MAKE SURE THAT YOU’RE NOT UNDER THE INFLUENCE. OKAY? ABSOLUTELY, DOC. IMPORTANT REMINDERS WE HAVE FOR OUR VIEWERS THERE. JUST A LIST OF THINGS ABOUT, YOU KNOW, NEVER PUTTING FIREWORKS IN THE DIRECTIONS OF FAMILIES OR CHILDREN. NEVER HAVE THEM INSIDE PUTTING SOAKING THEM IN WATER AFTERWARDS. SO FOR YOU, DOC, WHAT’S IT LIKE WORKING ON THE 4TH OF JULY WEEKEND? HOW ARE YOU PREPARING AT THE HOSPITAL? WELL, THE HOSPITAL IS REALLY COME TOGETHER. WE HAVE A GREAT TEAM. I HAVE 14 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN REALLY MAJOR INJURIES, BLAST INJURIES. THE BURN SURGEONS ARE THE BEST IN TOWN. THE BURN SURGEON THAT’S ON CALL. DOCTOR HOWARD SMITH HAS DECADES OF EXPERIENCE. WE HAVE A WHOLE TEAM OF EXPERIENCED TECHS, NURSES AS WELL AS THE ERS READY AND AVAILABLE FOR INJURIES TO COME IN. DOC, IS IT SOMETIMES FRUSTRATING YOU FOR FOR YOU THOUGH BECAUSE WE DO THESE STORIES EVERY YEAR ABOUT THE PRECAUTIONS. YOU KNOW, WE LIFT ALL THE GRAPHICS OF THE SAFETY ALERTS AND WHAT YOU SHOULD DO AND SHOULDN’T DO. STILL SOMETIMES JUST, YOU KNOW, FOLKS AREN’T PAYING ATTENTION? OH, ABSOLUTELY. YOU HAVE TO BE REALLY DILIGENT BECAUSE THESE INJURIES HAPPEN HAPPEN IN A SPLIT OF A SECOND. SO IT CAN BE FATIGUING FROM OUR STANDPOINT. BUT AT THE SAME TIME, WE JUST TRY TO DO OUR BEST TO GIVE OUR PATIENTS THE BEST CHANCE AND BEST FUNCTION. WELL, DOCTOR, THANK YOU SO MUCH. ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU WANT TO SHARE WITH OUR VIEWERS BEFORE THEY HEAD INTO THEIR 4TH OF JULY CELEBRATIONS, ESPECIALLY IF THEY’RE HOSTING AND THEY PLAN ON SETTING OFF FIREWORKS. ANYTHING YOU WANT THEM TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO. ALL I KNOW IS I TELL MY FAMILY MEMBERS NOT TO USE FIREWORKS. ACTUALLY, I, I ENCOURAGE THEM TO GO TO PUBLIC DISPLAYS. I THINK THAT’S TRULY THE SAFEST WAY. IF YOU’RE GOING TO DO IT, PLEASE DO IT SAFELY. MAKE SURE THAT YOU’RE NOT UNDER THE INFLUENCE. MAKE SURE YOU SUPERVISE CHILDREN AND HAVE ALL THE SAFETY EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE. DOCTOR, WHEN. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US THIS MORNING. WE HOPE YOU HAV
Orlando surgeon prepares for busy weekend of blast injuries
Updated: 10:43 AM EDT Jul 3, 2026
Orlando Health surgeon Dr. Minh Nguyen is preparing to treat patients with blast injuries during the 4th of July weekend. He explains the most common injuries he sees from fireworks and what you can do to prevent ending up in the hospital.
ORLANDO, Fla. —
Orlando Health surgeon Dr. Minh Nguyen is preparing to treat patients with blast injuries during the 4th of July weekend. He explains the most common injuries he sees from fireworks and what you can do to prevent ending up in the hospital.