By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) yesterday released a list of banned firecrackers, ahead of Christmas and New Year’s Day celebrations.

BCPO spokesperson, Police Senior Inspector Armilyn Vargas, said any firecrackers or pyrotechnics below a three-second fuse with 0.2 grams of explosive powder are prohibited, according to RA 7183, or the Firecrackers and Pyrotechnics Regulation Act.

Among the firecrackers identified by the BCPO include Pla-pla, OG, Giant Whistle Bomb, Kabasi, Piccolo, Super Lolo, Atomic Triangle, Large Judas Belt, Large Bawang, Pillbox, Goodbye Philippines, Bin Laden, Mother Rockets, Lolo Thunder, Coke-in-Can, Kwiton, Atomic Bomb, and Five Star.

Aside from firecrackers, another device, locally known as “Boga,” which is made of PVC pipe and injected with denatured alcohol and triggered by a piezo igniter, is prohibited.

Vargas reminded firecracker vendors who fail to secure a permit, or are in possession of an expired permit, are not allowed to operate. She also reiterated, the sale of firecrackers is restricted to the rear of the Pope John Paul II tower, located along Rizal Avenue Extension in the reclamation area.

Earlier, the Bacolod City government ordered the city’s barangay captains to strictly adhere to Executive Order No. 28, signed earlier this year by President Rodrigo Duterte, which regulates the use of firecrackers and other pyrotechnics.

Executive Assistant Ernie Pineda suggested barangay councils designate an area as a firecracker zone.

Once an area has been determined, barangay captains must inform the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the City Mayor’s Office, and the Sectoral Concerns Office, who will then provide that information to the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and the police./DGB, WDJ