In view of the many serious injuries caused by New Year’s Eve firecrackers in previous years, he “always asked himself whether it’s really worth it that we in Germany accept such dangers from firecrackers and fireworks due to the largely unregulated use that has been common for decades,” said Dahmen. “At the moment, this question is all the more urgent because the entire emergency medicine and rescue services are already under extreme pressure due to a large shortage of staff and numerous serious respiratory diseases.”
The FDP health politician Christine Aschenberg-Dugnus told the newspaper that in view of the “precarious supply situation in the hospitals, we have to appeal to the population to behave carefully and considerately”. Aschenberg-Dugnus also pointed out the possibility for municipalities to designate areas where fireworks are prohibited on New Year’s Eve.
The CEO of the German Hospital Society (DKG), Gerald Gass, had previously outlined the fears of the industry. “We have to assume that the hospitals and their emergency rooms will be as heavily burdened with fireworks injuries on New Year’s Eve as they were in the years before the pandemic,” he told the editorial network Germany. At the same time, the situation is tense due to frequent respiratory diseases and staff shortages.
