The city recorded a total of our fireworks-related injuries during the Christmas and New Year celebrations or from Dec. 21, 2025 to Jan. 4, 2026.
The figure was a 50 percent decrease from the previous year’s data of eight cases, according to the City Health Services Office (CHSO) under City Health Officer Dr. Celia Flor Brillantes.
The first two cases happened days before Christmas eve (Dec. 21 and 22) involving two male minors aged 11 and 12 years old who sustained severe injuries after the firecrackers they were handling exploded in barangays Lower Dagsian and Irisan, respectively.
The incidents prompted Mayor Benjamin Magalong to issue a memorandum for intensified surveillance and implementation of the firecracker ban based on City Ordinance No. 144, Series of 1951, as amended by City Ordinance No. 53, Series of 2009 at the barangay level where he promised to hold accountable punong barangays and police station commanders of areas where injuries will occur.
The campaign was successful as no additional cases were recorded even on Christmas eve. However, on New Year’s eve, two new cases transpired in Irisan and involved two males aged 25 and 45 who sustained first degree burns in their thighs. Both were bystanders and did not directly handle the firecrackers.
The mayor immediately sought explanations from the heads of the police stations and barangay where the incidents happened.
BCPO City Director P Col Ruel Tagel said that as of 8 a.m. of Jan. 1, 2026, the different stations and forces confiscated a total of 13,528 assorted firecrackers and illegal noisemakers like boga, engaged 136 firearm holders/owners and issued 4,263 letters and notices to barangays reminding the public on the illegal sale, use of firecrackers to include warning on illegal discharge and indiscriminate firing of firearms. – Baguio City Public Information Office