EDITOR – Happy New Year but not for all. This letter is addressed to all the New Year’s Eve firework fanatics in Ashley, Pinetown.
Along with the importers of these ridiculous waste of foreign exchange items I would like you to know of at least one horrific start to 2015 you firework fanatics can be proud of.
Our neighbour’s large, wonderfully loyal dog was a casualty of the firework bombardment. The dog had shelter in the owner’s double garage but the noise caused him to come out of the garage and try to get inside the house where other smaller dogs were sheltering. In the large animal’s panic the dog broke a plate glass window. The glass cut the dog’s front leg at the ankle which bled profusely rendering the dog unconscious from blood loss quite quickly.
At this time it seems that the dog will recover thanks mainly to a tremendously fast and helpful reaction of the Ashley Residents Neighbourhood watch folk on duty – they reacted thinking there might have been a criminal break-in involved.
The net result is our neighbours start their 2015 with an insurance shortfall of several hundred rand on the broken window plus a tally of horrendous expense at the after hours Veterinary Hospital in Sherwood whose dedicated staff have probably done their best for the dog.
Our neighbours start their new year with expenses so far of R1 500 deposit on admission on New Year’s night out of an initial emergency help bill of R2 000 and next day further costs of between R9 000 to perhaps as much as R11 000 for tendon reconstruction around the injured leg – 50 per cent to be paid before their beloved dog can come home.
Know well you firework fanatics that your few minutes of macho entertainment can cause untold suffering. Remember that Guy Fawkes was a terrorist leader in British history with nothing to recommend him as he tried to violently overthrow a democracy. Certainly he is not a historical individual of any merit to be commemorated even on 5 November and more certainly, fireworks in suburban areas have no place whatsoever on New Year’s Eve.
Perhaps an importer of fireworks would like to re-invest some of their ill-gotten profits to help pay for our neighbour’s horrific veterinary bills.
John Davison
Ashley, Pinetown
