Safety Over Revelry Mid Virus Pandemic

Violators of firecracker, fireworks ban face arrest, Manila mayor warns

- AFP and Minka Klaudia S. Tiangco

The world readied to usher in the New Year Thursday, with pandemic controls muting celebrations for billions of people eager to bid virus-ridden 2020 farewell.

After a grinding year that has seen at least 1.7 million people die from COVID-19, fresh waves of infection have sparked renewed lockdowns and forced would-be revellers to extend their 2020 tradition of watching events from the sofa.

From Sydney to Rome, firework displays, pyre burnings and live performances will be watched online or on television – if they have not been cancelled altogether.

The eagerly awaited first lights of 2021 will fall on the Pacific nations of Kiribati and Samoa from 1000 GMT, with the uninhabited Howland and Baker Islands the last to tip over into the New Year, 26 hours later.

Although the Pacific islands were spared the worst ravages of the pandemic, border restrictions, curfews and lockdowns mean this New Year's Eve will still look a little different.

At the palm-fringed Taumeasina resort near the Samoan capital Apia, manager Tuiataga Nathan Bucknall is pleased to be open without a limit on guest numbers, but thanks to a COVID-induced state of emergency we do have to stop the service of alcohol at 11 p.m.,” he said.

In Australia's largest city, Sydney, pyrotechnics will still light up the glittering harbour with a dazzling display, but few spectators will be there to watch in person.

Plans to allow crowds were scrapped amid a cluster of around 150 new infections that have seen travel to and from Sydney severely restricted.

Even a proposal to allow 5,000 frontline workers to replace absent tourists on the harbour foreshore as a token of thanks had to be abandoned.