IN PREPARATION for the New Year’s Eve, Iloilo Mayor Jose Espinosa III designated firecracker zones and selling areas in the city.
This is in compliance to President Rodrigo Roa Duterte’s Executive Order No. 28 which regulates and control the use of firecrackers and other pyrotechnic devices.
Last year, Espinosa issued the Executive Order (EO) No. 153, declaring all the district plazas as display areas for firecrackers and pyrotechnic devices. These are plazas of La Paz, Molo, Arevalo, Plaza Libertad, Mandurriao, Lapuz, and Jaro.
“Because of the existing order sa national, there will be areas nga designated as selling areas and ang plazas lang sa major districts naton amu ang pwede maka palupok (Because of the existing order from national, there will be areas designated as selling area and the plazas of major districts are the only designated areas allowed to utilize the firecrackers),” Espinosa said.
Espinosa said that they will implement the same order issued last year.
“The same procedure kita sa pagpalupok diri sa siyudad sang Iloilo parehos sang last year (The same procedure for the use of firecrackers in the City of Iloilo, similiar to last year),” he added.
Aside from the previous rules, based on the recommendation of the Bureau of Fire Protection, Espinosa issued the EO No. 119 designating areas for buying and selling firecrackers and pyrotechnics. The areas were Circumferential Road 1 corner Jocson Street; C1 corner Iloilo East Coast-Capiz along Ondoy’s Sugbahan; and Muelle Loney Street in front of the Muelle Loney Statue.
The city has also permitted the SM City Car Park and Megaworld as a firecracker display area during the 50th Dinagyang Festival however, Espinosa said that he will get the recommendations from the Philippine National Police, Bureau of Fire Protection, and the team headed by the City Administrator Hernando Galvez if they will still authorize these areas.