Majority of New Year injuries recorded in Metro Manila - DOH

MANILA, Philippines - The National Capital Region accounted for 58 percent of the total number of firecracker injuries so far this year, the Department of Health (DOH) said Wednesday.

The agency said 345 injuries were from the region with Manila having the most number of injuries with 138.

This was followed by Quezon City (64 injuries), Las Piñas (26), Marikina (24) and Caloocan (18).

Earlier: New Year injuries more than double in 3 metro hospitals

According to the DOH, Quezon City is the most dangerous city in Metro Manila for firework injuries followed by Pasig, Mandaluyong, Valenzuela, Marikina, Manila and Las Piñas.

Health Assistant Sec. Eric Tayag said this list was based on the number of most dangerous barangays for New Year revelry injuries and number of firecracker injuries in these areas.

The cities that do not have barangays that are most dangerous to firework injuries include Malabon, Caloocan, Makati, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasay, Pateros, San Juan and Taguig.

Tayag added that the most dangerous list of areas for firecracker injuries was based on the greatest number of reported injuries from 2010 to 2012.

As of Wednesday morning, the DOH has recorded 599 firecracker injuries in the country.

Read: DOH: Firecracker injuries nearly 600

114 truckloads of garbage collected in Luneta

At the Rizal Park area in Manila, at least 14 truckloads of garbage were collected hours after almost a million Filipinos welcomed the New Year on Tuesday night, the Philippine News Agency reported.

The report said the entire 58-hectare park was almost cleared of the garbage left behind by 800,000 to 900,000 people who converged at the national landmark.

Kenneth Montegrande, spokesperson of the National Parks Development Committee, said in the report that tourists who will improperly dispose garbage at the Rizal Park could be punished by eight hours of community service.