Tighten vigilance over children, urge police

Mohammed Alaa, Staff Reporter

The Abu Dhabi Police have warned of the dangers of fireworks during the Eid Al Fitr celebrations and have urged parents to tighten control over their children who tend to buy them in a bid to help them avoid tragic accidents. They stressed that the law punishes whoever trades in, import, export, manufactures, brings in or attempts to bring in fireworks with a jail term of up to six months or a fine of no more than Dhs10,000 or both. It is considered an aggravating circumstance to bring in or manufacture fireworks for trading purposes, they added.

The police explained that fireworks not only pose a danger to young users but also affect those in their vicinity, because they may cause various burns and deformations that may lead to permanent or temporary disabilities, not to mention the property damage caused by the erupting fires.

Brigadier Salem Hammoud Al Baloushi, Director of the Weapons and Explosives Department of the Security and Ports Sector, said the record of festive games is full of painful stories including finger amputations and ocular lacerations that may lead to blindness, not to mention skin damage if children are directly injured.

Underlining Abu Dhabi Police’s keenness on raising awareness of the dangers of fireworks, Al Baloushi pointed out that fireworks are relatively weak explosives made of highly flammable chemicals that cause severe injuries.

He considered fireworks of all kinds as a cause of noise and chemical pollution, noting that the damage caused by their disturbing sounds cause fear among sleeping infants and children sleeping, while their harmful smell leads to a lot of health damage. In addition, fireworks cause environmental damage if stored in warehouses wrongly, randomly and unsafely, he said.

Al Baloushi called for celebrating Eid and enjoying other happy occasions without going through unforeseen surprises, emphasising the importance of alerting the society, families and educational institutions to the dangers of firecrackers and strongly encouraging children not to buy or use them. He called on the public to immediately inform the competent authorities about the shops or websites that illegally sell such festive games, which are regarded by some traders as a source of illegal gains regardless of their risks.