Fireworks injuries down 15 percent

Metro Manila logged the most number of fireworks injuries, while the Bicol Region reported the biggest increase in cases among all regions

The Department of Health on Sunday reported an additional 85 fireworks-related injuries in celebrations welcoming 2023, bringing the total cases to 137.

Health Officer-in-Charge Maria Rosario Vergeire said the figure is 15 percent lower compared to the reported injuries due to firecrackers last year.

Vergeire noted that the figure is also 46 percent lower compared to the five-year average period. She also said that there were no reported cases of fireworks ingestion and stray bullet injuries.

However, a 17-year-old girl in Payatas, Quezon City was reported to have been hit by a projectile in her right arm early Sunday, according to a police report. Authorities were determining if it was a stray bullet.

Metro Manila logged the most number of fireworks-related injuries, while the Bicol Region reported the biggest increase in cases among all regions.

Meanwhile, the health department saw a decrease in fireworks injuries in CALABARZON, Central Luzon, the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Western Visayas, Ilocos Norte, Cordillera Administrative Region and Central Visayas.

Vergeire said most fireworks-related cases were male, of which most were from the adolescent group aged 12 to 17 years old.

She also noted that the year’s fireworks-related injuries which require amputations are lower compared to the previous years.

Likewise, she said that the majority of the injuries took place outside homes, while 45 percent of the cases occurred inside homes.

“Compared to last year, most of the cases took place in the streets compared to their homes this year,” Vergeire said, attributing it to the increased mobility and relaxed restrictions.

The Health official also reminded the public to avoid picking up unused firecrackers in the streets to avert harm and danger.

Meanwhile, the Payatas Bagong Silangan police station of the Quezon City Police District recorded the appearance of a girl before it, to report her being hit by a “stray bullet.”

The girl said she was taking a video of the fireworks display when she noticed her right arm bleeding. She was brought to the Maclang Hospital where an object was removed from her arm.

The police were trying to establish whether it was indeed a bullet that hit the girl.

PHOTOGRAPH BY BOB DUNGO JR. FOR THE DAILY TRIBUNE @tribunephl_bob Starting ‘23 right The first day of the New Year, 1 January 2023, finds every nook and cranny of the Luneta in Manila packed with friends and members of families strolling or setting up picnic powwows on the grass. After the celebration comes the cleaning.