NCRPO: 78% fewer firecracker-related injuries

The National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) recorded 55 injuries related to New Year’s celebrations from December 21. The figure is a record low and is being attributed to light rains in Metro Manila and the increased awareness of the sweeping 2017 order that limited firecracker use.

If this number holds until January 6, it would mean a 78 percent decrease from last year’s 248 recorded cases over the same period.

Adding to this improvement, the NCRPO also reported no stray bullet cases during the New Year festivities.

Successful info campaign

NCRPO Director Guillermo Eleazar credited this year’s drop in firecracker-related injuries to the aggressive information dissemination campaign that made more people aware of President Rodrigo Duterte’s Executive Order No. 28, signed in June 2017 to restrict the use of pyrotechnics to designated community fireworks zones.

Eleazar also noted that police visibility throughout the metro also contributed to the public’s safety during New Year’s Eve. At least 12,000 police offers were deployed across Metro Manila to monitor the celebrations.

The Department of Health (DOH) shared the NCRPO’s optimism even though the police and DOH data differed. Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said their department recorded a 68-percent drop in the number of firecracker-related cases.

“I would like to believe that this is the historic biggest reduction in firecracker-related injuries,” Duque said.