Highly flammable
The greatest risk of floating lanterns is the risk of fire. In principle, you send off a small fire and you have no control over where the sky lantern goes or lands.
The lanterns fly at an altitude of up to 800 meters, burn for 20-40 minutes and can fly many kilometers away. If a lantern falls down while it is still burning, it can start fires in both houses and vegetation.
Thinks it's flares
Chinese lanterns can easily be mistaken for flares. This gives many false alarms to rescue teams, and unnecessary call-outs.
The headlights fly high and can also interfere with air traffic. When the lanterns burn out and fall down, they are left as garbage in nature. Animals can also injure themselves on the steel or bamboo rods and the paper from which the lamps are made.
No ban on Chinese lanterns
In Norway, we do not have a general ban on the purchase, sale and use of Chinese lanterns. However, everyone has a duty to show general caution and act in a way that prevents fires. Chinese lanterns are flying bonfires that you can't control, so be very careful if you're going to use these.
Several countries, such as Austria and Australia, have a total ban on Chinese lanterns. Some states in the United States have also banned the product.