Plastic surgeons treated 62 victims of fireworks in the last year

Plastic surgeons have treated 62 fireworks victims so far since the start of this New Year’s period. That is eight more than last year. The surgeons have carried out five hand amputations and treated victims who lost 18 fingers and 6 thumbs in total.

“The severity of the injuries remains worrying, with many young victims and serious amputations as a result of illegal fireworks,” said plastic surgeon Annekatrien van de Kar. The figures come from the Dutch Society for Plastic Surgery (NVPC).

Of all victims, half were under 18. Only 10 percent of the fireworks used were legal, the NVPC said. The remaining injuries were caused by Cobra firecrackers, shells or mortars, rockets, and homemade fireworks. “I find it incomprehensible that children still have access to this,” said Van de Kar.

The victim had lit the fireworks themselves in about 75 percent of cases, while 13 percent were bystanders. It is not yet known how the others were injured.

The victims treated by plastic surgeons across the country were mostly seen around New Year's Eve. Only 16 percent had already sustained injuries before December 30.

The NVPC has been pleading for a ban on consumer fireworks for years. Although the number of victims has stayed around the same the severity of the injuries is increasing, the association has stated. The share of accidents involving the heavy fireworks Cobra-6 has almost tripled from 23 percent in 2019-20 to 62 percent in 2023-24.