I WAS shocked when I heard that a toddler and a one-month-old baby narrowly avoided injury when youths threw fireworks into the crowd at a Ross-on-Wye bonfire night celebration on Saturday.

Like many other people, my reaction was: how stupid can you be?

Not only were they putting their own lives at risk, but the lives of others –including children – too.

Thankfully, the children escaped unhurt, but the consequences doesn't bear thinking about.

Helen Whitmarsh told the Hereford Times that trouble began at the Chase Hotel bash when youths started throwing fireworks in her family's direction 15 minutes after they arrived.

One firework landed on her brother-in-law Darren Glanville while he was holding Helen's two-year-old daughter Isabel.

He managed to shake off the banger, before it blew up on the floor.

Another firework exploded next to the pram where Helen's one-month-old son Jacob was sitting.

Watching fireworks can be a great experience, especially for youngsters, but these incidents highlight the dangers that they pose when mishandled.

Each year, there are awareness campaigns to try to prevent serious injuries occurring, but they are generally aimed at people hosting their own private displays.

It may be that security should be tightened at public events to ensure that everyone watches the fireworks in safety.

It only takes a few mindless people to spoil the fun for everyone else.

What do you think? Do you think that more should be done to prevent these type of incidents from happening? Leave your comments below.