Hundreds hurt in pyro mishaps

From: http://www.sunstar.com.ph/cebu/hundreds-hurt-pyro-mishaps

HUNDREDS of Filipinos were injured by firecrackers and celebratory gunfire, despite a government scare campaign in which doctors displayed surgical saws on TV to warn revelers what awaited them if they were hurt by fireworks.

Health Secretary Francisco Duque said 230 people had been injured by early last night, and the number was likely to more than double by midnight as Filipinos bid goodbye to a year of natural disasters and political violence.

In northern Muñoz City, Nueva Ecija, a man died in a fire that gutted about 25 stalls selling firecrackers late Thursday near the city hall. It brought to mind the accident that killed a woman and two children in Mandaue City, Cebu last Christmas Eve, when a stray firecracker triggered a fire that leveled more than 50 fireworks stalls.

Investigators were trying to determine what ignited the Muñoz fire, which also injured a bystander, police said.

More than 50 hospitals nationwide were on full alert, their
emergency rooms staffed with trauma doctors for the expected influx of injured revelers.

“We’re prepared for the worst,” Duque said as he inspected preparations at an emergency ward in Manila’s Tondo slum district—an area notorious for the use of large illegal firecrackers.

Many Filipinos, largely influenced by Chinese tradition, believe that noisy New Year’s celebrations drive away evil and misfortune.

But many have carried that superstition to extremes, exploding huge firecrackers and firing guns to welcome the new year despite threats of arrest.

Last year, 737 people were injured, mostly by firecrackers.

At least 17 people were hit by gunfire at the height of wild celebrations, including a woman who died, according to the Department of Health.

Although the number of injuries has tapered off in recent years, largely due to hard economic times and the government’s scare campaign, the figures remain alarming, Duque said.

The government has gone to extremes to dissuade dangerous celebrations. The health department has shown gory pictures of mangled hands and eyes in posters and on its Web site.

Government doctors have used bone saws and drills to amputate fingers in mock surgeries shown on TV, but the dangerous tradition has continued.

“It’s extremely difficult because it’s embedded in the mindset of Filipinos that lighting up those firecrackers drives away misfortune,” Duque told The Associated Press.

“And it’s been a very, very difficult year.”

Typhoons, flooding, mass murders and erupting volcanoes have all added to the woes of the Filipino in 2009.

]]> http://livingincebu.net/24/feed/ 0 http://livingincebu.net/city-or-province/ http://livingincebu.net/city-or-province/#comments Sat, 21 Nov 2009 08:06:50 +0000 admin http://livingincebu.net/?p=22 A lot of expat’s wonder which is best? Live in the city and enjoy the amenities or live out in the province and appreciate the quieter lifestyle of rural living?

There is no one answer for everybody. I have lived in the province in a small seaside barangay and loved it. But I have also been bored stiff at times there too. The electricity supply was inconsistent and so too fresh water. If you ran out of anything the local sarisari store didn’t carry then you had no option other than hopping a jeepney, bus or passing friend to get into town before the shops closed.

Of course you really became part of the community. People got to know you and always smiled or waved hello. If you needed help there was always someone only too willing to go out of their way for you and, you felt safe. We rarely locked our doors at night and even leaving for a trip to town it was often enough just to ask the neighbor to keep an eye on the place for strangers stand out in small communities.

In the larger provincial town I lived in there was a similar sense of community, more to do and better convenience for shopping and getting the utilities arranged. Doctors and dentists were closer and the bus to the big city was always just about to fill up and leave.

Noise was more of a problem. There was still the 24/7 crowing of roosters as before but now we had to add motorcycles, cars, buses and trucks. In town we did lock the doors but we never had any problems.

Moving to the city we spent more. Simple as that. We could go out more often as there were more places to go and things to see, so we did. We ate out a few times a week more than in the town and we were at one mall or another almost as recreation two or three times a week.

It was busy, crowded, noisy and all the things you love about living in the Philippines. There were always plenty of pretty young things waiting for jeepneys as they went to or from college or work. Always another expat to sit and enjoy a beer with at a roadside stall or sarisari. And there were employment opportunities that were not available in the town or country.

It’s up to you and what you want but do try and spend a few months in each environment. Find one you like and settle down to it. If you don;t like it you can always relocate for far less than it would cost back home.

Half way up is Mr A’s, a great place for a good feed and some cold San Miguel beers as the sun goes down. You can continue up to Tops and pay the entrance fee but the view is no better and the beer is BYO – bring your own.  I like Mr A’s and regularly dine there with the wife and whenever we have visitors from elsewhere.

Keep going up the hill and pretty soon you go over the crest and can no longer see the sea behind you and nothing but ridges ahead of you. An hour or so later, depending how many derelict trucks are in front slowing you down and you start to descend to the west coast and Toledo. Along the way you can stop off at mountain top food stalls and markets and enjoy Lechon Baboy, roast pig by the roadside.

On the way back, stop at Mr A’s again and drink in the view… literally.

The worst thing I find living here is the traffic on the main road that runs through town from the north and the south ends of the island. From the south you can now get on the Coastal Highway just past Minglanilla and miss the worst of it from Talisay to Plaza Independenzia, then duck along the waterfront to Mandaue and link back up there.

The traffic is bad but you do get used to it and once you realize how it basically works, it can be a lot of fun. Just make sure your horn works or you are driving an unroadworthy car and I’m only half joking. WIthout the constant cacophony of the horn you run the very real risk of being involved in an accident.

The best thing about living in Cebu for me is the freedom. They have laws and rules and police and everything just like back home but nobody bothers you unless you really stand on someone’s toes. If you want to play your stereo loud, go for it. Drive like a loon, why not so long as a CETOM (traffic cop) doesn’t see you. All the little freedoms we used to take for granted but were one by one regulated out of existence or into heinous crimes are still to be had in Cebu.

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