Piccolo injuries doubled as police dragged heels on ban

While reported casualties from New Year's Eve revelries were fewer than in previous years, injuries from piccolo firecrackers increased dramatically. This raises questions about why the Philippine National Police (PNP) re-enforced an existing ban on piccolos only yesterday, despite persistent appeals from health authorities to crack down on the deceptively innocent-looking firecrackers.

There had been a ban on piccolo firecrackers at least since 2007, which police have apparently been slow to enforce until just a few hours before New Year's Eve. "We can't monitor everything" -PNP SPO3 Eric Fernandez, officer on duty at the PNP Public Information Office, admitted that there has been a long-standing ban on piccolos, but the continued proliferation of the said fireworks prompted the need to declare the ban repeatedly. "Nireremind lang ang mga kababayan. Alam mo naman tayong mga Pilipino, yung bawal ang ginagawa. (We are just reminding our fellow countrymen. You know us Filipinos, when it's not allowed, we do it.)," he said. However, he admitted that some vendors were able to slip beneath police radar. "Hindi namomonitor lahat, marami namang ibang ginagawa ang kapulisan at hindi rin naman ganun karami ang kapulisan, (We can't monitor everything, we have lots of things to do and there are so few policemen to be able to handle it all," said Fernandez.
For the latest Philippine news stories and videos, visit GMANews.TV Piccolos widely available New Year's Eve In Kingsville Subdivision along Marcos Highway in Quezon City, an abundance of piccolos were still on display and readily available as of Thursday morning. Janzen, a twenty-something student, was surprised when told that piccolos were on the list of banned firecrackers. “Talaga? Bawal yun? Kanina lang ang dami pang nakahilera doon, nakabili nga ako ng limang box eh," he said in an interview with GMANews.tv Piccolo-related injuries nearly doubled this year to 208 from last year's tally of 108, according to DOH figures. The piccolo is ignited like a match by scratching it against a rough surface. At a press conference Friday morning, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III mentioned a seven-year-old boy last year who went blind when a piccolo exploded in his face. There were 15 percent fewer firecracker injuries this holiday season compared to last year. But the casualties could have been much lower with an effective ban on piccolos, according to the Department of Health (DOH). Health authorities had long been pushing for a crackdown on piccolos, since these were among the leading causes of injuries in previous years. By the time the PNP finally "re-enforced" the ban on piccolos yesterday, many revelers had already purchased piccolos for their celebrations. National Epidemiology Center head Dr. Eric Tayag even appealed to the police on dwIZ radio “Umaapela na kami sa kapulisan na itong piccolong ito ipagbawal na kaagad (We ask police to crack down on these piccolos immediately)," he said. As of Thursday morning, New Year's Eve, DOH officials were still appealing to the police to enforce the ban and confiscate piccolo firecrackers, arguing that more than half of total firecracker injuries were caused by these tiny explosives. The legality of piccolos under RA7183 Section 3 of Republic Act 7183 of 1992 prohibits "the manufacture, sale, distribution and use of other types of firecrackers and pyrotechnic devices not mentioned (herein), of such explosive content that could endanger life and limb." It is interesting to note that piccolos are not included on the list of firecrackers and pyrotechnic devices allowed by the Act, nor are they mentioned anywhere else in the document. In an interview on dzMM, NCRPO spokesman Supt. Rommel Miranda explained that piccolos passed the minimum requirements of the Firearms and Explosives Office, which is under the PNP. However, considering the high incidence of piccolo-caused injuries, these firecrackers were added to the banned list on Thursday, since many piccolos are sold by vendors without permits. However, the ban will still be reviewed later on. “May business implications kasi yan. Irereview ang standards, kung gaano katagal sasabog, gaano ang laman na combustible powder. Kung talagang hindi puwede, magiging banned na ito talaga," Miranda said. But he admitted that he had observed the piccolo to be quick and powerful for its size. “Nakita ko na pumutok yan dati, mabilis talaga. Medyo malakas considering yung size niya. Natutuwa ang mga bata, kasi maganda tingnan at mabilis, pero yun nga po ang danger doon." At this morning's press conference, Health Secretary Duque reported 597 fireworks-related injuries during the holidays, a 15 percent decrease from 2008. But he said that celebrations could have been much safer with an earlier ban on piccolos. Injuries due to stray bullets Despite the fewer injuries, some emergency rooms were still busy with victims. In East Avenue Medical Center in Quezon City alone, six were treated for stray bullet injuries despite repeated reminders to the public not to fire their guns into the air. At least 203 people were injured and at least two were arrested in the metropolis in the run up to the New Year, Metro Manila police said early Friday, the first day of the year. Police figures from December 21,2009 to 4 a.m. of January 1, 2010 showed at least 11 injuries due to stray bullet injuries, said Metro Manila police spokesperson Superintendent Rommel Miranda. Last year, he said there were at least 290 firecracker-related injuries and even more in previous years. “Noong nakaraang taon napakarami, ang injuries umabot ng 500 before. Pero kampanya natin ng DOH, ang Iwas Paputok sinusuportahan ng PNP, nakita natin unti-unti nagkakaroon ng epekto sa mamamayan natin (In past years, the injuries went up to 500. But it is apparent the DOH’s Iwas Paputok campaign supported by the Philippine National Police is having some effect)," Miranda said in an interview on dzBB radio. Miranda also said at least two people caught firing their weapons indiscriminately were arrested in Quezon City. One reveler comatose Meanwhile in Pasay City, a man who was joining the New Year celebrations got run over a motorcycle and is now in a state of coma. Joey del Rosario, who was reportedly standing in the middle of Arnaiz Avenue in Pasay City lighting firecrackers when the motorcycle hit him, is confined at the Pasay City General Hospital, according to a report from radio dzBB. Also in Pasay City, two minors were hospitalized as they figured in a motorcycle accident along F.B. Harrison Street, swerving into its opposite lane and colliding with a passenger jeep. Meanwhile in Quezon City, the East Avenue Medical Center recorded at least 40 firecracker-related injuries and six injuries caused by stray bullets. In Sta. Cruz, Manila, a housewife was rushed to the Philippine General Hospital after sustaining burns in the stomach as pranksters threw a firecracker into a passenger jeep she was riding. According to initial investigations of the Manila police, the suspects hurled a piccolo into the jeepney, after which the firecracker exploded. The aluminum ceiling of the Light Rail Transit (LRT-1) also collapsed after pranksters lighted firecrackers there. The portion of the ceiling from the LRT Carriedo station crashed down on the center island of a portion of Rizal Avenue in downtown Sta. Cruz, Manila. But the LRT-1 management said the damage was relatively minor and would not disrupt the LRT’s operations. - CARMELA LAPEÑA/NC/HS/TJD, GMANews.TV