Texas dad shares stark warning about the dangers of fireworks after son suffered horrific injuries

A Texas family is trying to warn people about the dangers of fireworks ahead of the Fourth of July holiday after their teenage son received permanent damage just two years ago.

Nate Weston, then 17, was popping fireworks in his family's Houston-area front yard for the holiday in 2021. 

His father, David, said his son did 'everything right' when setting up the explosion and backed away from it. 

'The firework never went up. It exploded in the tube. So what happened was, all the pieces went exploding. He instinctively went like this, to protect his face and his arm and wrist sustained the majority of the trauma,' David said. 

David Weston is a paramedic and treated his son - blood pouring out of his arm - at the scene before taking him to the hospital.

Nate Weston, then 17, was popping fireworks in his family's Houston-area front yard for he holiday in 2021

'The bones in his wrist were pretty much decimated. And the bones in his forearm were both broken,' David told KHOU.

His son's arm was permanently damaged, David said.

'If you ask him, he's like 'my future literally blew up in my face,'' he added.

Nate suffered a broken forearm, a lacerated wrist and obliterated the bones in his arm.

Surgeons had to put two rods in the arm after cleaning out debris from his wrist, according to Katy Magazine. 

He needed to live with artificial skin over the wound for the month before a graft could be performed.

Weston also has limited mobility and can only lift his wrist to a certain extent. He also suffers from PTSD and the injuries ended his dreams of joining the Navy.

David has since become a prevention education coordinator at Memorial Hermann Hospital.

His father, David, said his son did 'everything right' when setting up the explosion and backed away from it

'The firework never went up. It exploded in the tube. So what happened was, all the pieces went exploding. He instinctively went like this, to protect his face and his arm and wrist sustained the majority of the trauma,' David said

Nate suffered a broken forearm, a lacerated wrist and obliterated the bones in his arm

Weston tries to advise people against amateur firework displays, no matter how harmless they seem. 

'My advice is to leave it to professionals because you never know what could happen, even if you're being completely 100% safe,' he said.

Dr. Todd Huzar, a burn surgeon at the hospital, says they're as dangerous as using guns without proper training. 

'Fireworks are no different than using firearms, there's a risk associated with them that people don't always take into account,' he said.

He warns people to be cautious if they're going to use fireworks, but that it might just be best to not use them. 

Dr. Todd Huzar, a burn surgeon at the hospital, says they're as dangerous as using guns without proper training

Sue Davis, a spokesperson for fireworks company Top Dog, added that 'you always want to shoot on open level ground so that nothing falls over'

'Don't mix with alcohol because it could affect your judgment, it can affect your speed and ability to get away. Keep children very far away from them.'

Sue Davis, a spokesperson for fireworks company Top Dog, added that 'you always want to shoot on open level ground so that nothing falls over.' 

'Fireworks are not toys. Every firework needs to be treated as something that you have to have a lot of respect for. You need to follow the directions, and follow all the common sense safety rules,' she added.