Photo: Mark DeMayo / ABS-CBN News" width="100%" />
Despite repeated warnings by authorities over the years, Filipinos still apparently love playing with fire — in this case, fireworks — to ring in the New Year with over 200 cases of fireworks-related injuries reported during the holiday.
The Department of Health (DOH) said that cases this year exceeded last year’s by 16 percent, with 74 cases recorded in DOH sentinel hospitals.
Metro Manila logged the highest number of cases in the country at 102. Western Visayas follows at a distant second with 25 cases, while Central Visayas reported 20.
Most of the injuries were attributed to kwitis, known as a skyrocket in English, a popular type of local firecracker that can be propelled to 40 or 50 feet in the air before exploding.
According to the Department of Health, 79 percent of the cases involved male victims.
