AT LEAST 19 were injured due to firecrackers in the Cordillera region.
Abra recorded the highest number of injuries with eight cases according to the Department of Health – Cordillera (DOH–CAR) public information officer Patrick Pineda.
Baguio City, Kalinga, and Mountain Province had three each while Benguet recorded two firecracker-related injuries based on the DOH monitoring from December 21, 2019 to January 3, 2020.
Apayao and Ifugao are the only provinces in the region which reported zero firecracker injury in the province.
“From the reporting period of December 21, 2018 to January 2019, there were 13 cases, so compared to the reporting period of December 21, 2019 to January 2, 2020 which is 16, we had an increase and data may change up to January 6 which is the end of reporting period,” Pineda said.
Police Brigadier General Israel Ephraim Dickson, Police Regional Office–Cordillera (PRO–COR) director, meanwhile, lauded firecracker dealers in the region.
“We were glad that all of the pyrotechnic dealers have abided on what can be sold, aside from how these fireworks were to be used. We were also satisfied with the support of the local government units, the Bureau of Fire Protection and other agencies who were ready to respond in case of any eventuality,” Dickson stated.
Dickson also commended PRO-COR and other law enforcement agencies for the zero incidence of indiscriminate firing.
“I am very glad that the commanders on the ground were really supervising well their respective units and at this point in time, there are no reported case of any uniformed personnel who have engaged in indiscriminate firing. This is a continuing manifestation of the brand of PROCOR as the most disciplined police regional command in the country,” Dickson added.