A joyous yet bloody occasion - Countdown to 2015

This year's countdown to 2015 was not without any accidents. Or to put it more bluntly, casualties.

The world was counting down to 2015 on the 31st of December 2014, but different countries did it differently. The countdown to 2015 in Philippines was very much a sizzling yet dangerous affair. For the Filipinos, counting down was a time for them to set of firecrackers. It would have been safe if they were experienced and seasoned users of it. It wasn't the case. Many children had their hands on these potentially dangerous equipment as the countdown to 2015 happened. Deaths and injuries resulted and by the early hours of 2015, the hospitals were busy. A boy as young as 5 reportedly lost his arm to the firecrackers. Many lost their lives. I feel sorry for those who have lost their lives celebrating the countdown, but I could not help but question why the people who did not have experience using them were in fact using them. Why did parents allow their children to use them? Why were these firecrackers even purchasable in the country?

These firecrackers at the beginning were very cheap and easily attainable. If these firecrackers can kill people, they are no different from guns. The deaths arising from the misuse of the firecrackers could be largely due to their ignorance and lack of knowledge regarding the product. I blame this on the lack of legislation and enforcement on the use of firecrackers. Firecrackers should be banned or at the very least, be sold only to licensed users.

Looking over to China, we see how a stampede unfold as a result of people rushing forward to take fake money thrown down by others. Though these may be only speculations, the fact that 36 deaths and 47 injuries arose from this stampede undermined order in the country when the countdown was going on. The countdown party will unexpectedly see a huge turnout, as such there should be enough police to ensure order so that everything goes smoothly.

Both cases are emblematic of many other accidents happening not just during countdowns, but also parties which see large turnouts. When there is heavy human traffic, there should be heavy police presence to ensure that everything goes smoothly. Sometimes in parties and pubs, when celebrations go too wild, it may lead to unforeseen circumstances. 

We can have fun, but we should do it the safe way.