DoH:116 hurt in New Year’s revelry

FIRECRACKER-related injuries in the Philippines during the holiday season have hit over 200, according to the Health department, with Metro Manila accounting for almost five of every 10 cases.

Of the 231 cases, 116 happened during the celebration of New Year from 6 a.m. on Sunday to 5:59 am on Monday, the Department of Health (DoH) said in a statement.

The tally could be higher as the department awaited further updates from hospitals.

Injuries recorded during the recently concluded holiday festivities increased compared to the years when the country was still subjected to coronavirus restrictions, Health Secretary Teodoro J. Herbosa said at a news briefing, citing a “revenge drive” among Filipinos to celebrate the new year with fireworks.

“A lot of the cases happened at home,” he said, adding that many cases were caused by legal fireworks. “So remember, even if they’re legal, they are still dangerous.”

In its report, the DoH said 93% of the new cases occurred at home and in the streets with 60% blamed on legal or regulated fireworks.

“The new cases range from 11 months to 76 years old (median age: 20), with seven out of 10 (82, 71%) cases that are male,” it said.

The youngest victim was an 11-month-old baby from Metro Manila whose face and right eye suffered burns due to piccolo “lit by someone else on the street,” the agency said.

The oldest case, meanwhile, was a 76-year-old male from the Ilocos region whose right eye was injured due to a kwitis that he lit at home.

The DoH said there were three new amputation cases, bringing the total to 11. “There have been no additional reports of ingestion thus far.”

Metro Manila accounted for almost half or 113 of the 231 fireworks-related cases, followed by Central Luzon with 27 cases, and the Ilocos Region with 24 cases.

There were three cases each in Northern Mindanao, Central Visayas, and Cordillera Autonomous Region.

Kwitis was the top cause of injuries, followed by illegal firecrackers 5-Star, boga, piccolo, whistle bomb, and pla-pla. Luces, fountain, and triangle, which are all legal in the Philippines, were also the main cause of injuries.

“Illegal fireworks are to blame for just four out of every ten cases (102 in total or 44%), with legal fireworks causing more injuries,” it said. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza