British man dies in Thai firework tragedy

A BRITISH man has died in Thailand after a firework reportedly exploded in his face during New Year’s Eve celebrations.

Local police said Gary Mclaren, 50, was killed when a firework he was trying to light exploded during a visit to the resort town of Pattaya.

He died at the scene shortly after midnight, according to reports.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said it was supporting the family. LT Col Somboon Ua-samanmaitree, from the Thai Tourist Police, told the BBC: “Around midnight, Mr Mclaren attempted to light up a large firework but it failed to go off at first.

“After that, it suddenly exploded and killed him at the scene.”

Mr Mclaren, from Northamptonshire, had visited Thailand before and had arrived a few days prior to New Year’s Eve.

Meanwhile, the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) dealt with more than 2,500 calls on Hogmanay, one of the busiest nights of the year.

Additional call handlers, dispatchers, ambulance crews and support staff were on duty to deal with the high levels of demand on New Year’s Eve.

Service representatives said control centres handled 2,547 calls between 7pm on December 31 and 7am on January 1, a 2.7% increase on the same period last year.

Chief executive Pauline Howie said: “Our frontline staff have coped with an exceptionally busy period over Hogmanay.

“It was a real challenge this year, as it has been over the whole festive period, but day in, day out our staff have constantly risen to the challenges and have shown real dedication.”