New Year injuries plunge 68%

MANILA, Philippines — With more people taking the firecracker ban seriously, the Department of Health (DOH) recorded 105 firecracker-related injuries on New Year’s Eve – a 68 percent drop in cases from last year.

“We are relatively pleased that we have recorded a 68 percent reduction in cases. ‘Relatively,’ because there are still injuries reported, but ‘pleased’ because of the substantial reduction,” Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said in a press conference.

He said while the number of firecracker-related injuries has been going down over the years, this is by far the biggest reduction seen by the DOH. He attributed this to the ban implemented by the Duterte administration under Executive Order No. 28.