Survive the New Year: for whom the festive fireworks can be the last

So that instead of Santa Claus with gifts, firefighters in helmets do not appear and instead of a feast not get into the police, it is important to know a few simple rules.

Irina Mishina

Accidents - the harbingers of the holiday - have already begun. On December 26, a four-year-old girl was admitted to intensive care after eating fireworks powder. The little girl found a box of fireworks that her parents had saved for the New Year, opened it and tasted the powder. Soon she became ill. Now she is in a state of moderate severity.

And someone has already begun to frantically salute the New Year. As a result, in one of the courtyards of Balashikha, cars in the parking lot were fired at with fireworks, and they caught fire. The sparks hit one passer-by.

In the north-west of Moscow, a powerful homemade firecracker exploded in a five-story apartment building. The result is sad: the windows were knocked out, and the pyrotechnics lover himself was taken to the hospital with lacerated wounds all over his body, his hands and head were especially damaged.

But in the Kuban it turned out funny. There, at the Maryanskaya station, a pyrotechnics store was selling goods wholesale and retail in gigantic lots on the eve of the holidays. The robbers caught the trend, tied the guard with the seller and stole 600 thousand rubles of proceeds from the director's office. They took another 120 thousand from the safe in the trading floor. All this hit the cameras, and the villains were instantly detained.

In general, the night of January 1 is like a nightmare for many. The explosions of fireworks before dawn under the windows, the noise of firecrackers flying up somewhere nearby, frightened pets, small children crying with fear - all this, unfortunately, has become an indispensable attribute of the New Year. The number of victims of such a celebration and the number of complaints passed a critical level, and the Ministry of Emergency Situations took decisive measures. There, before the holidays, a meeting was held at which it was said: this year in Moscow, quite specific sites have been allocated where you can blow up firecrackers and launch fireworks. There are only 62 such sites for fireworks in the capital. At a briefing in the Department of Trade, together with employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, these sites were named.

Such a measure is long overdue. Misfortunes on New Year's Eve happen with enviable regularity, in this regard, all units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations are put on high alert. Also on New Year's holidays, reinforced outfits of firefighters take over on duty. In Moscow, for example, every sixth fire brigade employee will meet New Year's Eve at work.

Alas, there is no way without these measures. The pyrotechnic arms race is getting louder every year, higher and more powerful. Experts have calculated that fireworks and salutes cost 8 billion rubles in Russia every year. Damage from accidents cannot be accurately estimated.

Fires in apartments have also become an attribute of the New Year. Most often, Christmas trees are burning: either an electric garland has shorted out, or a spark from a sparkler has hit the tree. But most of all injuries and injuries from New Year's pyrotechnics: burned hands and feet, eye injuries, burns to the face and even severed fingers. Often firecrackers explode in hands, and rockets fly at people. By the way, the charge of the most powerful firecrackers on the market today reaches 70 grams in TNT equivalent. For comparison: there is less TNT in the F-1 grenade. That is why sellers of pyrotechnics advise not to hold firecrackers in their hands when setting fire to them. Any pyrotechnic product in a confined space is a small grenade, the sellers explain. It is surprising that the weight of the explosive in the firecracker is not stipulated by the legislation. There is only one limitation for today: the sound volume at a distance of 5 meters from the firecracker should not exceed 140 dicebells. By the way, 140 dicebells is roughly the volume of a gun shot.

“In Moscow this year, special sites for pyrotechnics have finally been allocated, where it will be possible to launch household fireworks and firecrackers. These sites are indicated on the websites of the prefectures. It is strictly forbidden to blow up pyrotechnic products near houses and near trees. If pyrotechnic products will be used in a non-designated place, near houses, you should immediately contact the police by phones 102 and 112. There were cases when these firecrackers flew onto balconies and fires occurred. It is strictly forbidden to fire fireworks and firecrackers from the balconies of buildings, next to trees, as this can lead to a serious fire. In addition, when setting off to launch firecrackers and fireworks, you need to move a safe distance from residential buildings and playgrounds. The minimum distance from residential buildings should be 50 meters. If someone does not comply with these instructions, it is necessary to urgently call the police", - said the Novye Izvestia deputy. Nikolay Chashchin, Head of the 5th Regional Department for Supervision and Preventive Work of the Directorate for the Central Administrative District of the Main Directorate of the EMERCOM of Russia in Moscow.

Also, rescuers pay attention: you can not launch fireworks while intoxicated and smoke next to firecrackers. It is strictly forbidden to launch pyrotechnics from the balconies of houses. Firecrackers and fireworks can break a window or hit an open balcony, causing a fire in an apartment building. Rescuers also report another misfortune: often fires occur when power grids are overloaded due to heating appliances left unattended.

“Glowing garlands are the same electrical appliances, they cannot be left plugged in. When using glowing garlands, it is important to observe safety measures: if there is damage to the insulation, you cannot use such a Christmas tree decoration. As well as placing nearby objects and decorations made of flammable materials, especially cotton wool, ”explained the deputy. Nikolay Chashchin, Head of the 5th Regional Department for Supervision and Preventive Work of the Central Administrative District of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation in Moscow.

It is clear that on a holiday you want fun and noise. But if you cross the border, for some, the New Year holidays may not end. The fact is that annually, according to statistics, 9-12 thousand people die during the New Year holidays. These losses can be compared to the population of a small provincial town. The climax always fell on January 1st. On this day, an additional 2.2 thousand people die. So the holidays are the time to take care of yourself and your loved ones.