DOH: 599 injured in New Year revelries

For one simple mistake, 15-year-old Christian Tupaz will spend the rest of his life incomplete, specifically without a thumb and an index finger.

A report on GMA News TV's “Balitanghali” on Wednesday said Tupaz's two fingers had to be amputated after a pla-pla, an illegal firecracker, exploded in his hand during the New Year's Day revelry.

Tupaz was among the 93 patients with firecracker-related injuries brought to Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center in Manila, the hospital that accommodated the most number of patients with revelry-related injuries during the New Year celebrations, according to the Department of Health.

Aside from firecracker-related injuries, the hospital also attended to cases of vehicular accidents, stabbing, and indiscriminate firing. None of the six victims of stray bullets brought to the hospital died, the “Balitanghali” report said.

As of 6 a.m. Wednesday, the DOH has reported 599 cases of fireworks- and firecracker-related injuries during the celebrations. The number was 29 percent higher than the injuries recorded in the same period last year, said DOH assistant secretary Eric Tayag at a press conference.

The highest number of firecracker-related injuries was recorded in the National Capital Region, followed by Region I (Ilocos Region). Manila was named as the most dangerous city as it posted the most number of revelry-related injuries.

The DOH said children up to 15 years old were the usual victims, most of them by “piccolo,” another illegal firecracker. — Rouchelle Dinglasan/KBK, GMA News