
At least ten fireworks-related incidents had been tallied in Sta. Ana Hospital, Manila as of 1 a.m. New Year's Day. | Photo by KING RODRIGUEZ
The Philippine National Police on Monday said at least one person was killed while another was wounded after being hit by stray bullets during New Year's Day celebrations.
Aside from the casualty from a stray bullet, the PNP also reported one death due to firecrackers.
Meanwhile, the Department of Health said at least 116 new firecrackers-related injuries occurred during the celebration of the New Year, including five cases of stray bullets.
Due to delays in reporting, Health Secretary Teodoro "Ted" Herbosa said the numbers could be higher.
"This could increase as sometimes there are delays in reporting our sentinel sites or hospitals," Herbosa said in a press briefing.
The new cases include an 11-month-old baby boy who was victimized by piccolo, an illegal firecracker.
The department said the 11-month-old baby boy, who is the youngest firecracker-related injury victim so far, was from the National Capital Region.
The infant's face and right eye sustained burns from a piccolo lit by a bystander on the street.
The new cases also include the oldest case, a 76-year-old man from Ilocos Region, who sustained an injury in his right eye from a Kwitis that he lit at home.
Over the past 24 hours, the department said there were three additional cases of amputation, bringing the total number of amputation cases to 11.
From 22 to 31 December, the agency recorded a total of 231 fireworks-related injuries, with almost five out of every 10 cases coming from NCR.
Of the total caseload, 95 percent occurred 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 injuries were Kwitis, 5-Star, Boga, Piccolo, Whistle Bomb, Pla-Pla, Luces, Fountain, and Triangle.