Lagos State to Arrest Sellers and Users of 'Knockout' Fireworks During Christmas

As the Yuletide activities kicks off nationwide, Lagos State
Government, through the state Emergency Management Agency,
LASEMA, has urged parents and guardians to warn their children and
wards to desist from the use of fireworks, popularly called “banger,”
even as it warned sellers against the sale of the items.
Mr. Michael Akindele, the General Manager LASEMA, who gave the
warning yesterday, in his Alausa office, said that a special team
consisting of the agency, the police and other security operatives have
been mobilized to apprehend offenders within the ambit of the law for
prosecution.
According to Vanguard, he warned dealers and end users of fireworks
to steer clear of the state because of the potential hazard of the item
to the people and the environment.
Akindele reiterated the earlier ban on the use of the device by Lagos
State Police Commissioner in order to further ensure safety of lives
and properties in the state.
He recalled the ordeal of December 26, 2012 Jankara fire outbreak
caused by the storage of fireworks in some of the shops leading to
loss of lives and properties worth millions of naira.
Akindele noted that the noise created by fireworks and the large
amounts of debris and fallout left over after shooting may also cause
health hazards and environmental nuisance which could degenerate to
disaster under certain conditions and inimical to health of the
communities and neighborhoods where the users live.
He said: “The careless use of fireworks may be dangerous to the users as
they stand the risks of sustaining burns and wounds as well as harming
bystanders or cause fire outbreak when thrown on inflammable materials,
in this period of fuel scarcity and potential storage of it in homes and
other public places.”