Neighborhood complaints, complaints from the community’s animal rights entities and avoiding the risk of fires in pastures and interface areas, motivated the mayor of Chillán to definitively decide to rule out celebrating the arrival of 2024 with fireworks for this year. as it used to be celebrated until before the pandemic in the regional capital of Ñuble.
“That is now completely ruled out, at least in my administration there will no longer be a fireworks show like those that were done before, and for many reasons, not only for environmental justifications,” he explains.
Among the reasons that weigh the most, the communal chief explains, he highlights that the fireworks show for each New Year meant an outlay of close to $100 million.
“With those same resources, we were able to hold a Christmas concert, with the choir of the University of Concepción, which was of great quality and brought together many families; and also, hiring a top-level show, truly spectacular, such as the ’31 Minutes’ show, which for the second time fills the Plaza de Armas with residents of our commune. People of all ages, who had a great time.”
On the other hand, the mayor added that events held in the Plaza de Armas can attract a larger number of neighbors, “and we saw that people had no problems arriving because it was a show in the center of the city and not on the outskirts. , as happened with fireworks.”
In this way, it is anticipated that to celebrate the arrival of 2025, efforts will also be made to promote the end-of-year festivities and Christmas, as has been done in recent seasons.
“We will opt, in any case, for more artistic events that allow coexistence between neighbors,” he noted.
Support among councilors
The mayor’s position was supported transversally by the Municipal Council, especially by those who chair the Environment and Municipal Security commissions.
“It is widely known that fireworks cause too much stress to many animals, especially dogs and cats, who live minutes of terror due to the noises and explosions, so it seems very appropriate to us that cultural events be chosen. , which, moreover, have proven to be well received in the city,” says councilor Ricardo Valdebenito, president of the council’s Environment Commission.
Rodrigo Ramírez, who chairs the Safety Commission, adds that “the conditions are not there for fireworks, especially in a commune that has suffered so much due to the issue of forest fires or interfaces. Imagine if a spark generates a fire in dry grass and with a number of people and with traffic jams, even with fire trucks arranged as a precaution at the scene, it would be very complex for them to advance towards the scene of the accident in those conditions.”
He adds, from another position, that “I also do not believe that the public security conditions are in place to hold a show in the early hours of the morning, among a mass of people and with little capacity for police protection, while in the events that we have had in the Plaza de Armas, have developed completely normally.”
The “31 Minutes” show alone attracted nearly 10,000 people, according to municipal estimates.
Modern and clean parties
Councilors like Joseph Careaga and Juan Pablo López, who also share the mayor’s decision, add that we cannot lose sight of the fact that Christmas and New Year are different events, focused on other types of environments and that they should not be discarded.
“Many municipalities have also discarded fireworks and have replaced them with light shows, drones and other types of clean technologies that cause an impact similar to that of fireworks,” says Careaga.
López, meanwhile, for whom “spending on fireworks is burning money,” is also part of imitating models of celebrations and citizen parties that take place in other places where “they use lasers, water mirrors and many other options that are safe and very entertaining.”
Camilo Benavente says that he does not rule out analyzing andthese options for the future.
