Scientists recommend drones for July 4 fireworks, masks

They’re blowing up patriotism.

Drones should replace fireworks at the annual Macy’s Fourth of July show, according to a scientist and co-author of an explosive new study bashing the cherished holiday tradition as a public health concern.

“In the ideal situation, if we wanted to protect our health as best as possible, let’s replace fireworks with drones,” said David Luglio, a postdoctoral fellow at Tulane University who co-authored a new pollution study, published this week in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology.

At the very least, those who gather in person to watch the displays should consider wearing COVID masks, according to the new paper, which found microscopic pollutant levels briefly rocketed 23,500% in Midtown after the 2023 Macy’s July 4th show on the East River.

“Wearing an N95 or KN95 mask is a good way to avoid inhaling smoke when standing near a display, especially for children and for those with preexisting heart and lung problems,” said co-author Antonio Saporito, a doctoral student at NYU Grossman School of Medicine.

Critics, however, were ablaze over the idea of replacing the beloved Independence Day fireworks shows with a banal drone display.

“As usual, environmentalists reveal they are little more than killjoys,” said City Council Minority Leader Joe Borelli (R-Staten Island).

Bay Ridge resident George Smith said he would be “offended” if he saw buzzing drones rather than awesome pyrotechnics.

“It’s a tradition! A patriotic tradition!” roared Smith, 49.

Last year’s Independence Day display set off roughly 60,000 shells over the East River, causing the concentration of airborne pollutants to jump to 3,528 micrograms per cubic meter at East 34th Street and 1st Avenue in Manhattan 30 minutes after the event ended. Fifteen micrograms per cubic meter is the daily average for the city, the experts said.

At three other sites near the East River, just north of Stuyvesant Town and in Long Island City, Queens, airborne pollution levels were more than double or even triple the June 2023 concentration of 460 micrograms per cubic meter recorded when smoke from Canadian wildfires turned the Big Apple skies post-apocalyptic orange. It was unclear when the concentrations returned to baseline levels at these sites.

Exposure to high concentrations of such particles can aggravate asthma and emphysema, and increases the risk of respiratory infections, according to the recent study. 

Inhaling the pollutants also is strongly correlated to heart disease, the researchers wrote.

A Macy’s spokesperson said the company works closely with government agencies to follow applicable laws and regulations when producing and executing its annual fireworks display.