New Year celebration safer than last year due to decrease in casualties

MANILA, Philippines — Despite Department of Health Secretary Enrique Ona’s disappointment at the turnout of cases of New Year revelry-related injuries, the celebrations that bid goodbye to 2011 and welcomed 2012 was much more peaceful and safe, said Interior and Local Government Secretary Jesse Robredo on Sunday.

He said that comparing the initial reports of this year’s revelries to that of 2010, there were less fire incidents, injuries caused by firecrackers, and stray bullet victims.

Robredo attributed the drop in cases of fires and accidents to the government’s intensified campaign against the use of fireworks during the New Year “Iwas-Paputok” efforts as well as the DOH’s “Aksyon: Paputok Injury Reduction”.

“Our objective was ‘zero-casualties’ from firecracker-related injuries… Although we have lesser casualties now compared to last year, we intend to reduce that number this year,” he explained.

He said that the decrease in injuries stemming from reckless use of firecrackers meant that their joint efforts against banned and dangerous firecracker products were a success.

But the work does not stop after the New Year as Robredo said that they were “still collating reports from the field. But initially, reports reaching my office indicate that the 2012 New Year’s eve celebration was more peaceful and safer than in previous years.”

Alarming reports of 18 persons who fell victim to stray bullets while celebrating the New Year prompted the DILG official to direct Philippine National Police chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome to have his men conduct investigations on the incidents.

He said that Bartolome will order his field investigators to collect and run through ballistics tests the bullet slugs recovered from the victims in their hopes to find out who the trigger-happy culprits were and bring them to justice.

“The PNP Crime Lab has the Integrated Ballistics Identification System equipment which can compare the slugs to the ballistics records of licensed firearms the PNP Firearms and Explosives Division has on file,” he explained, adding that they will also subject police officers who reportedly discharged their firearms during the New Year to paraffin tests.

The DILG cited data from last year and said that 30 persons were reportedly hurt by stray bullets amid holiday celebrations.

Robredo also revealed that there were less fire incidents in Metro Manila in 2011 compared to 2010, saying that there were only 12 fire incidents monitored during the New Year.

He cited Bureau of Fire Protection-National Capital Region records showed a drop from 2010’s 277 fire incidents during December to 2011’s 188 for the same month.

The BFP issued warnings to the public about possible fire incidents during New Year festivities, as the use of fireworks has been part of Filipino tradition in celebrating the holiday year after year.

BFP officials reiterated warnings on the danger of fireworks use during revelries, roaming the streets of the metropolis on board their fire trucks.