Zero injury in Christmas revelry in Davao City

DAVAO CITY — The city government’s ban on firecrackers and pyrotechnics paid off handsomely for the 1.6 million city folk because no injuries were reported during the Christmas Eve revelry.

Police said there were neither cases of firecracker-related injuries nor any victims of indiscriminate firing. Hospitals also reported no admissions of such victims.

"We hope the trend would continue until the New Year. It is hard if we have cases of people losing their hands, arms or even their lives because of these firecrackers," Mayor Rodrigo Duterte said.

The local ordinance strictly prohibits the sale, distribution and use of firecrackers and pyrotechnics. It metes out stiff penalties, including the confiscation of business permits of establishments caught selling these products.

The Southern Mindanao police also reported no cases of indiscriminate firings or firecracker-related injuries throughout the region.

Duterte, who chairs the Regional Peace and Order Council, conducted his annual Christmas gift-giving at his residence yesterday.