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AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) — Doctors at the UCHealth Burn Center say the 2020 Fourth of July Weekend was one of the busiest they have ever had.

“This year we had a record number of admissions and consultations because of the amount of people doing fireworks at home,” said Dr. Arek Wiktor, a burn surgeon.

John Wintermote was one of those patients.  The father of six says he was shooting off fireworks at his home in Wyoming when he realized that an ember had blown onto a stack of mortars, and lit a fuse. His children were nearby.

“I just knew I had to get in-between them, and that explosion,” he said. “I ran over, and jumped on it.”

His family was OK, but Wintermote could not see out of his left eye and his pants were on fire.

After a trip to the local ER, Wintermote ended up at the UCHealth Burn Center, and he is expected to recover.

“He was basically peppered with shrapnel from the firework,” Wiktor said.

The burn surgeon says it’s important to take precautions when using any kind of firework or explosive.

Wintermote agrees. 

“Make sure that you’ve got no exposed fuses,” he said.