Fireworks injuries spiked to 105 cases across Negros Island as residents rang in the New Year, with health officials flagging children and unsafe firecracker use as key factors behind most incidents, data from the Department of Health–Negros Island Region (DOH-NIR) showed as of Friday, January 2.
Negros Occidental logged the highest number with 75 cases, followed by Negros Oriental with 26. Bacolod City and Siquijor each reported two cases, according to DOH-NIR records.
The agency found that 11 victims were intoxicated, while 35 were actively handling or lighting firecrackers when injuries occurred. As of January 1, DOH-NIR classified the cases into 47 blast or burn injuries without amputation, 13 eye injuries, eight combined eye and blast injuries, and one case that resulted in hand amputation.
DOH-NIR Assistant Regional Director Adrian Hort Ramos reported that males accounted for 86 percent of the victims, while females comprised 14 percent, with patients aged between 2 and 52 years old.
He identified the most severe case as a hand amputation caused by a blast or burn injury.
Ramos also identified Triangle firecrackers as the most common source of injuries with 17 cases, followed by Boga with 11 and Kwitis with eight.
Other cases involved Lata Cañon, Five Star, and whistle bombs with five cases each; sparklers with four; unidentified firecrackers with three; and bamboo cannons, candle bombs, and sky rockets with two cases each.
Single cases involved a granada, camara, dragon firecracker, improvised fireworks, and lantaka.
During a January 1 press briefing at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital, Ramos credited the decline in cases compared with previous years to the DOH’s intensified safe-holiday campaign, which the agency launched on December 15, 2025 in coordination with other government agencies.
He said the data showed growing public caution in celebrating the New Year but stressed the need to sustain safety education, particularly among children and parents, since minors made up most of the victims.
Ramos also noted that some injuries occurred when relatives or siblings handled firecrackers, causing harm to children.
The health official emphasized that keeping communities safe during celebrations requires shared responsibility, saying that festivities should bring families together rather than send loved ones to hospitals.*
Reymund Titong is a Filipino journalist steadily building his voice in the field of news reporting, driven by a commitment to tell meaningful and relevant stories.
He serves as a correspondent for Rappler, maintains a personal blog on Medium, and is the communications officer of Hope Builders Organization Negros Island.