22 dead in riotous New Year
2004-01-01 08:46
Manila - At least 22 people were killed and about 500 others were injured as the Philippines ushered in the New Year with a raucous binge that sparked fires, shootings and accidents, officials and reports said on Thursday.
A thick pall of smoke from exploding firecrackers and burning tyres shrouded Manila before dawn amid reports of hundreds of firework-related injuries during the celebrations.
Government hospitals reported 223 firecracker-related injuries in Manila, and the national total is "approaching 500", said health department official Chito Navarro.
Radio stations reported at least four shooting deaths in the capital, along with four fires. They said at least some of the deaths were accidental, caused by revellers firing their handguns into the air.
The deadliest incident linked to the New Year's Eve revelry was a blaze that gutted a firecracker store in the city of Lucena southeast of Manila on Wednesday.
The toll from that blaze has risen to 18 confirmed dead and at least one missing, Philip Castillo, said a member of the Lucena city council.