Strict rules on firecrackers sale, use ordered in Cebu City

Local

CEBU City Mayor Nestor Archival has issued an executive order strictly regulating the sale, display, and use of firecrackers and fireworks in the city.

This also limits all authorized selling activities to a single designated area at the South Road Properties (SRP) to ensure public safety during the Christmas and New Year celebrations.

Archival signed Executive Order No. 047, Series of 2025, ordering tighter controls on firecracker sales and prescribing safety and operational standards amid recurring concerns over fires, injuries, and accidents during the holiday season.

“This executive order clearly designates where firecrackers can be sold and where they can be used. Those who want to buy and set off firecrackers should only go to the designated area,” Archival said during a press conference on Monday, December 22.

Under the EO, the sale and display of fireworks and firecrackers are allowed exclusively at Pond F, South Road Properties (SRP) from December 18 until January 1, 2026. No other location within Cebu City is authorized for firecracker selling during this period.

The mayor said vendors have already started setting up at the SRP site but stressed that registration and compliance with the Business Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO) are mandatory.

“I told them that they should be properly registered and compliant with BPLO requirements,” Archival said, adding that a ‘no permit, no selling’ policy will be strictly enforced.

He explained that the SRP area was chosen due to its distance from residential communities and its suitability for safety management.

“The area is near the end of the SRP, under the ridge going toward the bantay dagat area,” he said.

To minimize risks, the EO mandates strict safety protocols for all authorized stalls, including a minimum six-meter distance between stalls, clearly visible ‘No Smoking’ signages, and the presence of functional fire extinguishers, water, and sand at each stall.

A designated parking area must be at least 15 meters away from the selling site, and testing or igniting firecrackers within or near the selling area is strictly prohibited.

Archival said the city government would deploy a standby firetruck and water tanker at the SRP firecracker zone as an added precaution.

“I also placed a firetruck there so that if something happens, it can be put out immediately,” he said.

The EO also prohibits the use of firecrackers and pyrotechnics in sensitive areas, including hospitals and clinics, schools and daycare centers, public parks and plazas, marketplaces, and residential areas within 50 meters of hospitals, schools, and churches.

Violators may face penalties, including confiscation of firecrackers and fines, depending on the gravity of the offense and in accordance with existing local and national laws.

Archival ordered barangay disaster risk reduction and management teams to remain on high alert throughout the holiday period to prevent illegal firecracker use within communities.

“In our barangays, the disaster teams were instructed to be vigilant and active because there might be people lighting firecrackers within residential areas. I ordered them to always be prepared,” the mayor said.

City officials earlier said barangays play a crucial role in enforcement, especially in densely populated areas where indiscriminate firecracker use poses serious risks.

The issuance of the EO comes amid renewed warnings from authorities over firecracker-related injuries and safety hazards. The Department of Health earlier reported a 38-percent increase in firework-related injuries, rising from 610 cases in 2024 to 843 cases in 2025.

Police have also reiterated that the sale and use of 31 banned firecrackers, including watusi, piccolo, lolo thunder, boga, and atomic bomb, remain illegal under Republic Act 7183, with violators facing up to one year in prison and a P20,000 fine.

The SRP has long served as Cebu City’s official firecracker zone under City Ordinance No. 2290, which bans firecrackers in residential areas and near critical infrastructure such as power lines and substations.(TGP)