900 injured in Filipino capital's News Years celebration
Posted: Mon Jan 01, 2007 7:05 am
Must've been one heck of a party... 
Firecrackers, stray bullets injure 900 in Philippines
Monday, January 1, 2007. 5:00pm (AEDT)
More than 900 people have been injured in violent new year revelry in the Philippines capital Manila.
The health department says the party-goers, including a pregnant woman, were injured by firecrackers and stray bullets.
Many of the victims were children, whose fingers were either maimed or amputated after handling powerful firecrackers unsupervised by adults.
The Health Secretary Franciso Duque told reporters the figure of 907 is 48 per cent higher than the previous year, but there were no fatalities.
"The good news is that there were no deaths reported this year compared to seven last year," Mr Duque said.
The Government has struggled to keep a ban on powerful firecrackers, which are used to traditionally usher in the New Year.
On Christmas Day, 25 people were killed in a fire in a store illegally selling firecrackers in the central city of Ormoc.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/20 ... 820082.htm
Firecrackers, stray bullets injure 900 in Philippines
Monday, January 1, 2007. 5:00pm (AEDT)
More than 900 people have been injured in violent new year revelry in the Philippines capital Manila.
The health department says the party-goers, including a pregnant woman, were injured by firecrackers and stray bullets.
Many of the victims were children, whose fingers were either maimed or amputated after handling powerful firecrackers unsupervised by adults.
The Health Secretary Franciso Duque told reporters the figure of 907 is 48 per cent higher than the previous year, but there were no fatalities.
"The good news is that there were no deaths reported this year compared to seven last year," Mr Duque said.
The Government has struggled to keep a ban on powerful firecrackers, which are used to traditionally usher in the New Year.
On Christmas Day, 25 people were killed in a fire in a store illegally selling firecrackers in the central city of Ormoc.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/20 ... 820082.htm