MANILA, Philippines -- The amputated hands are all Rodolfo de la Cruz and his son Ryan have to show for the revelry with which they greeted the New Year last year.

The Department of Health is hoping the father-and-son example would be enough warning to scare the public out of using firecrackers to usher in 2008.

The DoH presented the case of Rodolfo and Ryan to the media on Friday as part of the campaign that includes the usual posters and television ads explaining the dangers of firecrackers.

The five-year-old Ryan, singing to the tune of Yeng Constantino’s “Hawak Kamay (Holding Hands)” but changing the lyrics to “putol kamay (amputated hand),” recalled how a firecracker known as a “crying cow” injured him and his father on December 31, 2006.

The young boy happened to be holding on to his father when the firecracker exploded in his right hand.

A “crying cow” is a firecracker that, when lighted, emits black smoke and lets out the sound of a cow’s long moo. It is not among the list of prohibited firecrackers under Republic Act No. 7183, which regulates the sale, manufacture, distribution and use of firecrackers.

Ryan, in an interview, thought that what caused his injury was “luces,” a sparkler.

Nevertheless, Ryan cautioned the public against the use of firecrackers. “Wag na kayo magpaputok ha (Don’t explode firecrackers).”

Health Secretary Francisco Duque III reiterated appeals to the public to go for the far less dangerous but equally noisy home-made trumpets to welcome the New Year.

The DoH has so far reported 103 cases of fireworks-related injuries over an eight-day period (December 21-28). The figure is 68 cases lower than the three-year average for the same period, according to Duque.

The piccolo, five-star and triangle were the most common types of pyrotechnics that the public used last week, DoH data showed.

Duque also called for an amendment to RA 7183 to expand the list of prohibited firecrackers.

At present, the law allows the use and manufacture of pyrotechnics like the baby rocket, silver fountain, bawang, small trianggulo and watusi.

The New Year festivities in 2006, however, saw the use of fireworks such as Camara, Chickboom, Dart Bomb and Tamba Lete, which are not listed in RA 7183.

The DoH is pushing for the gradual phaseout of the use of firecrackers by the public for the New Year celebrations.

Duque said there was no such thing as a safe firecracker.

He said pyrotechnics that were earlier thought to be harmless could cause injury particularly to small children. The silver fountain, for example, could also cause burns, he said.

Even the small watusi could poison small children when ingested.

There were three reported cases of watusi ingestion in the December 21, 2006-January 5, 2007 period, which involved two children and a 55-year-old adult.

The boga , an improvised cannon made of PVC, is now prohibited by the police but is also not covered by RA 7183.