Ahead of Christmas and New Year celebrations, the Lagos State government has banned the use of all forms of fireworks and firecrackers majorly within business districts, markets and residential areas.
This was contained in a statement, Olugbenga Oyerinde, the Special Adviser on Central Business Districts to the Lagos State Governor, issued on Tuesday.
In the statement titled ‘Lagos CBD warns against sales, use of fireworks’, Oyerinde said that as Christmas is approaching, Lagosians should bear in mind that firecrackers can cause potential hazards to the people and the environment.
He said, “Some fireworks have the same sound as some of the guns criminals use and people cannot differentiate them. Also, there is a need to protect markets against fire outbreaks.
“Therefore, it is important to clamp down on the distribution and usage to help secure people and valuable property as the Christmas and New Year celebrations approach.”
Oyerinde stated that CBD enforcement officers and other security agencies have been mandated to ensure that fireworks are not used, especially within the business districts, markets and residential areas due to the onset of harmattan season.
He recalled the fire outbreak caused by the storage of fireworks in Lagos Island, which led to the loss of lives and property worth millions of Naira, adding that the danger associated with the use of fireworks could pose a great danger to society because of its capacity to cause a fire outbreak.
“It is not enough to have safety regulations, they must be enforced and complied with to prevent avoidable loss of lives, property and injuries. As a government which cares about the safety of lives and property, nothing short of strict adherence to safety rules will be acceptable, relevant provisions of the law will be applied against erring individuals and organisations”, he said.