TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan – The Cagayan Provincial Health Office (PHO) reported a decline in firecracker-related injuries in the province during the recent holiday season.
PHO records showed that 49 firecracker-related injury cases were documented from Dec. 21 to Jan. 6, lower than the 60 cases recorded during the same period in 2024.
Tristan del Rosario, Health Education and Promotion Officer II), attributed the decrease to intensified information, education, and communication (IEC) and health promotion activities conducted before and during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.
“Our district hospitals and Rural Health Units across the entire province conducted motorcades and distributed information materials to inform the public and help reduce firecracker-related injuries. The data showed that these efforts greatly helped,” Del Rosario said.
Based on PHO monitoring, the most commonly used firecracker among the injured was kwitis, which accounted for 24 cases.
Del Rosario added that most of the victims were youths aged 11- to 20-years-old, and noted that no stray bullet incidents were recorded in the province during the holiday season.