INQUIRER FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Health (DOH) confirmed the first cases of fireworks-related death and stray bullet injury (SBI) on Tuesday.
The fatality was a 38-year-old male from Ilocos Region who lit a cigarette while drinking near a bunch of firecrackers in storage.
Meanwhile, the SBI is a 23-year-old male from Davao Region who sustained a gunshot wound in his left upper back.
The department reminded the public that “guns, liquor, and fireworks should never mix.”
Meanwhile, there were 212 new cases of fireworks-related injuries recorded from 6 a.m. on January 1 to 5:59 a.m. on January 2.
“The new cases range from 1 to 71 years old (median age: 22), with almost eight out of ten (166, 79%) cases that are male. Ninety-seven percent (206, 97%) of these new cases occurred at home and in the streets,” the DOH said bringing the overcall FWRI to 443 based on the department’s tally since December 21, 2023.
This number is already higher than the 307 FWRI during the surveillance year 2022.
The surveillance year refers to December 21 of the current year to January 5 of the new year.
Out of the new FWRI, almost half (102, 49 percent) were due to legal firecrackers, and less than half of the cases (94, 45 percent) had active involvement.
The DOH also said that there were six new amputation cases, bringing the total to 17.
“There are one hundred and twenty-two (122, 28%) cases with eye injuries, leading to one confirmed blindness case. There is also one (1) more hearing loss case, bringing the total to two (2). There have been no additional reports of ingestion thus far,” it added.
READ: PNP: 1 dead, 1 hurt due to stray bullets on New Year’s eve
Out of the 443 FWRI, 441 were due to fireworks, one due to watusi ingestion, and 1 SBI.
“Almost six out of every ten cases come from NCR [National Capital Region] (254, 57%). Following NCR in rank as to number of cases are Ilocos Region (36, 8%), Central Luzon (35, 8%), Calabarzon (29, 7%),” the DOH said.
READ: DOH cites downward trend in fireworks-related injuries
It was also noted that 97 percent happened at home and in the streets, mostly by males with active involvement.
“The top ranking identified fireworks that cause at least seven out of every 10 (70%) FWRIs, in descending order, are kwitis, 5-star*, boga*, pla-pla*, whistle bomb, fountain, luces, piccolo*, triangle*. Illegal fireworks (marked with an asterisk) are to blame for just four out of every 10 cases (173, 39%), with legal fireworks causing more injuries,” the department further said.