Overview
- Bundesärztekammer president Klaus Reinhardt called for a nationwide prohibition on private pyrotechnics, citing heavy holiday injuries and pressure on emergency rooms.
- Frankfurt and Wiesbaden set up New Year security and fireworks‑ban zones, including checks on the Eiserner Steg and restricted access around Wiesbaden’s Bowling Green with a planned drone show.
- Police plan reinforced deployments, with Frankfurt assigning several hundred officers to watch for illegal devices and alcohol‑driven aggression, though identifying illicit fireworks after detonation remains difficult.
- Recent incidents include a severely injured 18‑year‑old in Heidelberg after a böller exploded near his face, a bar outbuilding fire in Mannheim tied to fireworks misuse, and a Berlin‑Spandau high‑rise blaze fought by more than 100 firefighters with two people treated for smoke inhalation.
- Dortmund police are probing two separate shooting cases over the holiday period, including gunfire at a private home with possible outlaw motorcycle‑gang links and a 27‑year‑old shot outside a kiosk, with witness appeals ongoing.