Firework ban?

Here, I worry about descending bullets......

Yes they can be just as dangerous. In Kuwait a car driven by expats was hit by a falling bullet. It came down through the windscreen and killed the female passenger. One time we were caught at traffic lights and Kuwaitis stopped on the road adjacent to us fired off a few rounds and we could see the bullets skimming across the top of our car bonnet (hood). Too close for comfort. :o

Anyway, things don't look like they've got off to a good start with firework season so far.

Fireworks season off to unruly start
Monday October 30, 2006
By Elizabeth Binning

The Government's warning to behave with fireworks or risk having them banned in the future seems to have fallen on deaf ears during the first weekend firecrackers were available to the public. Emergency services were called to a number of incidents around the country, including sparkler bombs being detonated in an Auckland playground and burning firecrackers being thrown into a house in Feilding.

Fireworks went on sale on Friday morning and by late that night Feilding police were already investigating an arson attempt after a firecracker was thrown through a lounge window.

The homeowner heard a smash at about 11.30pm and found the burning firework - which he managed to put out - in the house and fireworks on the lawn and in the letterbox.

Sergeant Ashley Gurney said police were "extremely concerned" at the potential loss of life and serious property damage that could have occurred from the incident. "It is a cowardly and unprovoked attack on a citizen in their own home in the middle of the night," Mr Gurney said.

In Auckland, St Heliers residents were left worried about the safety of their children after what appeared to be homemade sparkler bombs were left in a playground at Glover Park. One resident said some men pulled up in a van at about 5pm on Saturday and let off a bomb that was louder than any cracker he had ever heard. Later that night, similar loud explosions followed.

Graeme Underwood said he woke at 12.55am to an "almighty bang" coming from the park. "I thought a plane had crashed or something," he said. "Our house is about 200m away and it sounded like it was right outside the window." When Mr Underwood looked out of the window he saw a group of young men with a lighter on the other side of the park.

Yesterday morning two homemade sparkler bombs were found in the playground, one of which had not detonated. While no one was injured, there were concerns a child could have come across them and been injured.

In Invercargill, firefighters responded to a call after neighbours spotted suspicious activity outside an elderly woman's house. Fireworks had been stuffed into an internal mailbox attached to the garage of her home.

While Wellington and Christchurch firefighters reported a relatively quiet weekend, Auckland firefighters were kept busy with a number of callouts, mainly to burning letterboxes and shrubs. Fire Service spokesman Scott Osmond said calls started coming in after dusk but there was no reported damage by last night.

Inspector Barry Smalley, from the Police Northern Communications Centre, said staff received between 15-20 calls about fireworks on Saturday night but they were mostly "low-key". The worst reported damage was a letterbox that had been destroyed.

- Additional reporting NZPA

 Looking good for a ban.  

Fire Service horrified by fireworks mayhem
Tuesday October 31, 2006

The Fire Service is "horrified" that mayhem started just hours into this year's Guy Fawkes fireworks sale period.

Acting Fire Service National Commander Paul McGill said figures showed that there were 317 fires over the first three days of the 10-day period - about 105 fires a day.

The second day of the sale period, Saturday, saw 143 fires, the highest number on that date since statistics began in 1994. This compared with an average of 61 per day for the rest of October.

Fireworks had barely hit the shelves on Friday before firefighters and police were rushing to put out blazes, deal with homemade bombs and support shell-shocked homeowners, he said. "The service is horrified that the mayhem started just hours into the sales period."

A Feilding house was the subject of a deliberate attack after a firework was thrown through a window. Porirua police had to call out explosives disposal experts after a modified "bomb" was left at a primary school. In Invercargill, fireworks were put into an internal access mailbox, leaving an elderly woman's house at risk of catching fire.

Mr McGill says many of the incidents could have had extremely serious consequences. "If a firework starts a fire inside a house, it can be fatal for the occupants and very risky for the firefighters that have to put it out," he said.

"This isn't a hypothetical scenario either; last year we had a family lucky to get out of a house in Christchurch where fireworks were thrown inside and a room caught fire, and not so long ago firefighters were badly burnt following a deliberate fireworks fire in a video shop."

Mr McGill said the latest mayhem would push public opinion further in favour of a retail ban. "It appears that the hoons are going to ruin it for everyone, because the growing number of incidents of misuse is going to become intolerable to the public very soon."

- NZPA

Fireworks abuse gains momentum
Thursday November 2, 2006
By Kate Chapman



Firefighters and police have warned of disastrous consequences if people keep abusing fireworks in the lead-up to Guy Fawkes this Sunday. In response, Wellington Central MP Marian Hobbs has prepared a private member's bill which would ban the sale of fireworks to the public and allow community-organised fireworks events only with a council permit.

The Government warned last month that it might ban fireworks sales if they caused too much damage and injury this year.

Firefighters blamed fireworks for a blaze that gutted a second-storey room in a Palmerston North home day-care centre yesterday afternoon. A woman and four children were evacuated from the house where a home day-care service was operating on the ground floor.

Police said a fire at a North Shore supermarket last night endangered the life of a young child and narrowly missed a fireworks display. The Fire Service arrived at the Countdown supermarket in the Birkenhead shopping mall just after 9pm to find the mall evacuated and the supermarket filling with smoke.

Birkenhead station officer Grant Mitcheson said surveillance footage showed three youths running through the mall shooting fireworks at each other and later firing them into Countdown from the doorway. When firefighters arrived there were scorch marks on the linoleum and smoke pouring out of the fireworks stand where sparks had reached the packaging and cardboard.

"Nothing was still on fire when we arrived, but there were large amounts of smoke," Mr Mitcheson said. "It highlights careless people spoiling it for everyone else." He said nearly 50 people were in the mall when the skyrocket was let off.

The managing director of Countdown owner Progressive Enterprises, Marty Hamnett, said its stores took the safe selling of fireworks very seriously. "We in no way condone the stupidity of [lighting fireworks inside]." He highlighted the growth of short-term stores selling fireworks and questioned how stringently they were using safe selling practices.

Police said an 18-year-old male appeared in the North Shore District Court yesterday charged with intentional damage and trespass and was remanded on bail until December 20.

Hamilton fire chief Roy Breeze said his branch had dealt with several incidents in the past few days. The worst involved a home-made bomb made from fireworks explosives and petrol. A 15-year-old Norton boy had escaped serious injury as he tried to load a beer bottle stubbie with the explosive cocktail as he was smoking.

The device caught fire and damaged the sleep-out garage he was in. "He's a very, very lucky boy."

In Whangarei, sparkler bombs have blown up several letter boxes.

At a public meeting on Monday to discuss the problem a resident gave police information which led to three students being arrested. They are to appear in the Whangarei District Court today.

Whangarei/Kaipara area commander Inspector Paul Dimery said police would not tolerate such behaviour. Pranksters were "endangering the lives of other people and themselves."

A Palmerston North house was damaged by an accidental blaze caused by fireworks yesterday afternoon.

The Fire Service has attended 550 fires nationwide in the first five days of the fireworks sales period. A normal five-day period in October would have about 300 fires.

Recent incidents include:

* A day-care centre fire which started from a box of fireworks yesterday;

* A skyrocket allegedly fired into a supermarket last night;

* A teenager mixing fireworks and petrol in a beer bottle;

* Sparkler bombs used to blow up letter boxes.

Calming pets with 'chill' pill

As stocks of animal sedatives run dry, some veterinarians are resorting to human drugs to treat pets spooked by this year's Guy Fawkes displays.

Hawkes Bay veterinarian Roger McKinley said his practice had been "caught short" by demand this year as celebrations had started early. Because they were running out of acetylpromazine - a drug now off the market - a combination of sedatives and anti-anxiety drugs normally prescribed for humans was being used.

Mr McKinley, of Hastings Vetservices, said human drugs were not the ideal solution, but were perfectly safe when used according to guidelines and over a short space of time. He had prescribed 12 dogs with the drug over the past week.

"We don't give them without a consultation. They are restricted drugs and we have a duty to make sure they are not abused."

Auckland veterinarian Glenn Fraser said there had been a "mild to moderate" demand for sedatives for pets during the lead-up to Guy Fawkes. "Demand was heavier last year, but I'm not sure why."

Mr Fraser, of the Glen Eden Veterinary Clinic, said many people were choosing herbal remedies. "We use different sorts of sedatives such as ativan [a human anti-anxiety drug], which is a valium-like drug." Pets needed to be given the sedatives two to five hours before the event to be effective. "It chills them out, normally for about six to eight hours, " Mr Fraser said.

- HAWKES BAY TODAY, STAFF REPORTER

So... NZ bans handguns (n'est pas?), but allows any and every fool & hooligan to play with explosives? I think a ban is in order. ...Though maybe a ban on fools & hooligans rather than fireworks.

Sounds like a plan to me.

Beachside disorder mars start of Guy Fawkes
8.40am Sunday November 5, 2006

This year's Guy Fawkes Day was marred by bad behaviour by groups congregating in beach hot spots even before the day began.

Residents in Devonport on Auckland's North Shore reported fireworks being fired at people, cars and houses and called police to disperse a crowd of 300 people in nearby Cheltenham. Whitianga police broke up a fight of 40 people around 9pm last night and were called to stop youths liberating fireworks from a store.

Tauranga Police also confronted large-scale disorder, responding just before 1am to calls to break up a party of 200 youths where fighting broke out.

A police car window was smashed during an incident in Mount Albert in Auckland. Police were forced to retreat to wait for reinforcements to help restore order. Traffic on Auckland's southern motorway was again endangered by three youths throwing items from an overbridge at Maurewa. There were also disorder in the East Coast Bays.

The relative calm in Wellington where there was an organised fireworks display is expected to fuel the lobby to ban the sale of fireworks to the public.

Inspector Kerry Watson, who commanded the northern communications centre last night, said it was hard to say if disorder was less in areas where displays were organised.

"We are pretty lucky," he said on Radio New Zealand. No serious injuries were reported. "Some of the commonality in the incidents we are dealing with is fireworks being aimed at vehicles, persons and houses. We got a lot of complaints from people in the Devonport area."

It took time to disperse the large crowd in the suburb. Between 6pm and 1am there were approximately 423 reported instances of disorder in the northern police district, up 56 per cent on the previous week. In the same period the district received 1474 calls for assistance, up 30 per cent on a normal Saturday night.

It remains to be seen if politicians who put the public on notice to behave this year will carry through a threat to ban the sale of fireworks to the public.

Firefighters have called for a ban to be in place by next year and David Benson-Pope warned last month the Government would consider a ban unless the public behaved responsibly this Guy Fawkes period. A bill banning sales to the public, promoted by Wellington Central MP Marian Hobbs, went into the parliamentary ballot this week.

A TV3 opinion poll showed most people supported banning the sale of fireworks to the public. However, it was close - 52 per cent backed a complete ban, while 45 per cent were opposed.

This year most of the parties were expected to be on the Saturday night before Guy Fawkes. Fine weather may have contributed to the size of groups in beach areas. Intoxicated youths were prominent in the crowds at a time when there is a lobby to address a youth binge drinking culture.

- NZPA

Kind of wraps it up, doesn't it?

Record Guy Fawkes for fire service
12.40pm Monday November 6, 2006



The Fire Service dealt with a record number of call-outs during the 10-day Guy Fawkes sale period this year.

Preliminary figures released today show there were 1729 fires across New Zealand between October 27 and November 5, compared with 1632 over the same period last year. Over the weekend, there were 784 fires recorded.

The Fire Service is still calculating exactly how many fires were started by fireworks, but it said it was expected to top last year's record of 700 over the sale period. This is the fifth year in a row that the number of fires has increased.

Mike Hall, the Fire Service's chief executive and national commander, said the figures vindicate his call for a ban on selling fireworks to the public. He said today: "Despite warnings and a safety campaign, and even with parts of the country being much wetter than they were last year, firefighters were still called out more times than ever.

"That means that firefighters cannot respond as quickly as they would like to genuine emergencies, and thousands of volunteers across the country are needlessly called away from work and family commitments."

Labour MP Marian Hobbs has drafted a member's bill that would ban the sale of fireworks to individuals but would still allow big community displays to go ahead. That bill has to go into a ballot and will only be debated if it is picked out.

Prime Minister Helen Clark said today she did not want to be a killjoy but believed something needed to be done in the wake of how some people have used fireworks.

Mr Hall listed a nuber of reasons why he thought firework sales should be banned, including the danger to people, property and pets, and late-night noise. The lack of a major fireworks-related fire or death was pure luck, he said.

Total fires during Guy Fawkes sale period
(October 27 – November 5)

Year, number of fires
2000, 1017
2001, 702
2002, 827
2003, 905
2004, 1018
2005, 1632
2006, 1729

- NZHERALD STAFF, NZPA

What, no ban?

Fireworks mayhem leads to rule change
Tuesday November 7, 2006
By Elizabeth Binning

Restrictions will be made on the public sale of fireworks next Guy Fawkes after people failed to heed the Government's warning to be more responsible this year.

Environment Minister David Benson-Pope said the stupid behaviour of some people in the past week had shown tighter controls on the public sale and use of fireworks was needed next Guy Fawkes.

While he wants to speak with emergency services before deciding on what restrictions should be made, Mr Benson-Pope said there were two areas that needed tightening. They were the age at which people could buy fireworks and the number of days fireworks were on sale.

"The level of youth stupidity and dangerous behaviour are probably a couple of areas that need attention, particularly the age of sale and also the sale period itself," said Mr Benson-Pope. "I think most people would agree they are the two priority areas."

If restrictions are made on those areas the age people could buy fireworks would be raised while the number of days fireworks were on sale would be reduced.

Three weeks ago Mr Benson-Pope warned people he wanted to see an improvement on last year when emergency service workers attended hundreds of firework-related incidents. Preliminary statistics from police and firefighters show that warning fell on deaf ears.

While the number of fires started by fireworks this year is yet to be calculated the Fire Service expects it to top last year's record of 700 over the 10-day sale period.

Fire Service chief executive Mike Hall said the statistics vindicated his call for a retail ban on fireworks. "Despite warnings and a safety campaign, and even with parts of the country being much wetter than they were last year, firefighters were still called out more times than ever. As I said last month, and opinion polls since have backed this up, New Zealand is ready to see fireworks restricted to those professionals who know how to handle them."

But Mr Benson-Pope said he was not ready for a complete ban and he didn't think the public was either. "I don't think the community genuinely wants that [a ban]. I think we have got a community that's pretty evenly divided, more or less 50:50 on most of the polls and figures I have seen."

Guy Fawkes - The damage

* Police in the northern region received 360 disorder calls, mainly about fireworks, on Sunday night - about 50 per cent higher than normal.

* The Fire Service attended 1729 fires in the 10 days between October 27 and November 5, when fireworks were officially on sale.

* Over Saturday and Sunday, November 4 and 5, 784 fires were recorded.

* The number of fires started by fireworks is not known yet, but it is expected to top last year's record of 700 over the sale period.

• Auckland City Council reported an unusually high number of dogs such as cocker spaniels and labradors picked up by animal control officers over the Guy Fawkes period. At other times of the year breeds such as pitbulls predominate.

Fireworks sales cut, age limit up to 18
1:20PM Friday December 22, 2006



Fireworks will be on sale for only three days next year and they will be sold only to people over 18, the Government said today.

Environment Minister David Benson-Pope said he had stopped short of a total ban but it was still a possibility in the future."I believe the best approach at this stage is to tighten up the laws around sale," he said.

"Guy Fawkes is a fun event for thousands of families, and fireworks-releated damage is caused by a small group of mostly young people. I don't feel it's fair on New Zealanders to ban fireworks sales at this stage because of the actions of a minority."

At present, fireworks can be sold for 10 days, from October 27 to November 5, and the age limit is 14. Next year they will be on sale from November 3 to November 5.
Mr Benson-Pope said sparklers would not be sold separately, only as part of larger fireworks packs. This was to discourage the dangerous trend of "sparkler bombs".

The Government started considering further restrictions or a ban last year after the police reported increasing incidents of damage and injury before and after Guy Fawkes.

"I have listened to the various groups that do want a ban, and I am still open to that possibility in the future," he said today."We want to see fireworks users behaving responsibly, being aware of and avoiding fire risk, guarding the personal safety of themselves and others, and being aware of the effect the noise has on animals.

"I understand the frustration the Police and the Fire Service teams feel when faced with problems over Guy Fawkes, and I hope these new restrictions will send a message that deliberate harm or damage is criminal and is being clamped down on."

Documents released with the minister's statement said raising the age limit should mean fewer incidents in and around schools.Retailers will break the law if they sell fireworks to people under 18, and those buying them will have to present identification in the same way as purchasing tobacco or alcohol.

In further moves, officials will work with the fireworks industry next year on ways to improve the design, construction and performance of fireworks.This is intended to result in less explosive and unnecessarily noisy retail fireworks in 2008.

- NZPA