If you want to buy firecrackers and rockets, you have to put up with long queues. Shortly after the official start of sales, there is a massive rush in many places. But fireworks are not allowed everywhere on New Year’s Eve. FOCUS online tells you what to look out for.
After a two-year Corona break, consumers can set off fireworks again this year. The sale started on December 29th. FOCUS summarizes online here where you can buy rockets and firecrackers.
But rocket shooting can be dangerous – and that’s why there are bans in many places this year.
For the first time after a two-year Corona break, people in Germany are allowed to meet in larger groups and celebrate New Year’s Eve. Clubs, discotheques and bars also expect high sales. Especially at the beginning of the year there are crowds of people outside – and that is exactly why many communities and municipalities prohibit firecrackers. Pyrotechnics can be life-threatening if used incorrectly.
“The most common injuries on New Year’s include burns and other injuries to the hands, including the loss of fingers,” warns the Johanniter. Some cities in Lower Saxony and Bremen have therefore again decided to restrict firecrackers at the turn of the year. In large cities, noise protection is also used as an argument for banning firecrackers.
There should be a ban on fireworks, especially in places where there are many people. Firecrackers are generally not allowed in the immediate vicinity of churches, hospitals, old people’s homes and children’s homes, as well as particularly fire-sensitive buildings such as half-timbered houses. In addition, the municipalities can regulate further bans.
In the inner cities of Aschaffenburg, Augsburg, Bamberg, Landshut, Passau and Straubing, firecrackers are banned in many parts.
Bayreuth bans firecrackers in the historic center.
Berlin has set up three taboo zones. On parts of Alexanderplatz, in the Steinmetzkiez, on Pallasstraße in Schöneberg and around the Moabit correctional facility (JVA) in Mitte. Böllern is prohibited in these regions.
In Bremen, Bremerhaven and Emden there is a ban on fireworks in some zones on New Year’s Eve. In Bremen, the Schnoorviertel, the area around the town hall and the popular “Schlachte” mile will remain free of firecrackers. “Violations can be punished with a fine of up to 5,000 euros,” said the police. You are preparing for another busy night.
No fireworks are allowed on Frankfurt’s famous Main Bridge, the Eiserner Steg, on New Year’s Eve.
The same applies to the inner city of Göttingen. According to a city spokesman, this should not only protect people but also the medieval building fabric in the city centre.
Firecrackers are prohibited around the Binnenalster and on the Rathausmarkt in Hamburg. The ban applies to the streets Jungfernstieg, Neuer Jungfernstieg, Lombardsbrücke, Ballindamm, Reesendamm and the Rathausmarkt.
In downtown Hanover, carrying and burning New Year’s Eve fireworks from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. on New Year’s morning should not be allowed, according to the city administration. The city justified this decision with the high risk of injury, which means that the police are always extremely busy on New Year’s Eve. “Fireworks were often deliberately aimed at people,” it says.
In Ingolstadt, fireworks are banned in the city center.
Karlsruhe prohibits firecrackers on the market square and on the palace square. In Konstanz, Radolfzell (Konstanz district), Ravensburg, Calw, Rottweil and Villingen-Schwenningen (Schwarzwald-Baar district), there is a ban on fireworks in the old town and in the vicinity of historic buildings that could be damaged by the rockets.
Rockets and firecrackers are prohibited around the Cologne Cathedral on New Year’s Eve. Bags are checked on site.
In Marburg there are taboo zones – for example in the upper town.
In Munich it will be forbidden to shoot off fireworks at Marienplatz and in the pedestrian zone between Viktualienmarkt and Stachus. At the same time, there is a special ban on firecrackers within the environmental zone of the Mittlerer Ring. Category F2 rockets with an exclusive bang effect may not be ignited. Rockets and firecrackers without a bang, on the other hand, do.
Nuremberg has issued a firecracker ban in parts of the city center.
Rosenheim forbids firecrackers wherever there are wooden huts – for example near Christmas markets.
After the major fire on New Year’s Eve 2019, Schweinfurt banned firecrackers in the city center.
In Stuttgart there is a ban on fireworks within the city ring.
Because there are many thatched houses on the North Sea island of Sylt, there is a year-round ban on firecrackers. Violations can result in a complaint and a fine of up to 50,000 euros.
In some places in the old town of Thuringia, firecrackers are prohibited. There is also a ban in parts of Bad Blankenburg, Saalfeld, Schleusingen and Wasungen.
The city of Trier has issued a general decree banning fireworks in the main market area.
In Würzburg, firecrackers are forbidden in the following places: On the Old Main Bridge, in Augustinerstrasse, in Domstrasse, in Glockengasse, on Sternplatz and at the Vierrohrenbrunnen.
There are hardly any restrictions in the Lake Constance region, in Freiburg, Gießen, Heilbronn, Kassel, Koblenz, Ludwigshafen, Neu-Ulm or Ulm.
Also read: Golden rules – six snack traps you should avoid when losing weight
