Festive cheer marred by those playing with fire

Screenshot of an explosion at Nibong Tebal fireworks stall in Penang last month which put properties and vehicles in the vicinity at risk.

Recently I received pictures of injuries of a man in his 30s from Segamat, Johor, who lost his leg while playing with fireworks during Chinese New Year.

Another was the viral video of charred vehicles after a stall selling fireworks went up in flames in Penang on the second day of Hari Raya.

These graphic images are a stark reminder of the dangers of playing with fireworks especially when the items are easily available everywhere, including night markets, during festive seasons.

During the recent festive period, some Singaporeans flocked to Johor stalls, not just to purchase fireworks, but to get the stallowners to light them up for them to watch.

This is because there has been a total ban of fireworks including “Pop Pop” in the island republic since 1972.

This year has been an exceptionally noisy Chinese New Year and Hari Raya in my area in Tebrau, which kept my whole family up until 2am.

Why are super-loud, big fireworks –which we usually see during official events such as National Day – being sold openly?

Why aren’t there enforcement operations against such peddlers?

How can a cus­­­tomer know whether the fireworks he is buying is allowed or prohibited?

This year, police had said 45 types of fireworks, including “Pop-Pop and Happy Boom” were allowed.

Meanwhile, Fire and Rescue Department director-general Datuk Seri Nor Hisham Mohammad said there has been a 495% increase in fires related to fireworks from just 19 cases in 2024 to 113 cases last year.

Seven cases were recorded in the first two months of this year. Johor, Tereng­ganu and Perak have been identified as the states with the most number of cases.

While I do not think we need to take drastic action implementing a total ban, we need to beef up enforcement efforts to clamp down on the sale of banned fireworks.

The police and local councils need to carry out more checks and raids. Those found selling such fireworks should be charged.

The authorities must ensure that all premises selling fireworks must have fire extinguishers and sellers must be prohibited from lighting fireworks near their premises for their Singaporean clients.

Those who are caught playing with such fireworks also need to be punished with hefty fines or even community work.

Festive periods are a time to be happy instead of grieving or being in pain be­­cause of a fire or mishap caused by fireworks.