Unawareness, immaturity, ignorance. It's against this dangerous mix that the bomb disposal unit of the Naples Provincial Carabinieri Command works every day, especially as New Year's Eve approaches. A time when firecrackers once again fill streets and courtyards, often without a full understanding of the real risks.
The bomb squad's work isn't limited to repression. Prevention is paramount, which involves informing and training young people. As the Christmas holidays approach, the military meets with students—particularly middle school students—from Naples and the surrounding province, with the aim of raising concrete awareness of the dangers associated with the use of fireworks.
During the meetings, not only are illegal firecrackers demonized, often comparable to improvised explosive devices (IEDs), created without proper inspections, in unsuitable environments, and by untrained personnel. Attention is also focused on legal devices, which, if used improperly, can still cause serious injuries.
To make the message more impactful, the bomb squad takes a direct approach: real images of injuries caused by the misuse of firecrackers, easily available online. A clear message, repeated like a mantra: never collect unexploded firecrackers and never underestimate any type of firework.
Among the products that cause the greatest concern are friction firecrackers. Not all are illegal: some are legally authorized, the result of controlled manufacturing techniques. But when clandestine, they are among the most dangerous of all, so much so that this type is gradually being abandoned in favor of fuse-based devices.
A friction firecracker is a simple cardboard tube with a match-like head. Inside, a plaster cylinder houses a slow-burning fuse that leads to the explosive powder at its base. Assembly errors or inadequate manufacturing conditions can, however, contaminate the plaster with gunpowder residue, precipitating the explosion. In these cases, the bang can explode immediately, directly in the hand of the person lighting it.
The most significant emergency, however, concerns medium-sized cylindrical firecrackers, known as magnums, cobras, and similar, which are activated by fuses. These are often the result of widespread illegal production, based on the counterfeiting of legitimate brands and models. These items appear legitimate but conceal highly destructive potential.
In schools, bomb squads also insist on compliance with regulations: Category F1 fireworks can only be purchased by those over 14, while Category F2 fireworks are only available to adults. The instructions for use, clearly indicated on the labels, must be followed scrupulously. Many accidents, the military explains, result from incorrect lighting or use in unauthorized contexts.
Alongside prevention, the numbers of repression remain significant. Since the beginning of the year, the Naples Provincial Command's bomb disposal squad has destroyed 44 kilos of explosives, as well as three grenades and two hand grenades, seized throughout Naples and the surrounding province.
An impressive quantity, including onions, cobras, "sinner" bombs, "Maradona balloons," and other illegal pyrotechnics. An explosive mass comparable in destructive capacity to that of an aerial bomb, to which must be added the seizures in the weeks immediately preceding New Year's Eve.
These numbers confirm what is now evident: information, especially among young people, remains the most effective weapon for avoiding predicted tragedies.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
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