Germans rush to stock up on fireworks as sales start ahead of NYE

Shoppers in Germany rushed stores that opened at midnight to buy their supplies of fireworks for New Year's Eve, which can make some German cities sound like a war zone during turn-of-the-year celebrations.

In Meppen in Lower Saxony's Emsland region, not far from the Dutch border, a long queue formed in front of a shop that opened early Monday. People with shopping trolleys could be seen waiting in the cold for the doors to open.

In the port city of Bremerhaven, many people waited overnight in front of a fireworks manufacturer that started selling on Monday morning. Many came in groups and passed the time with games and music.

There was also a rush in Hamburg, as more than 100 people queued to get their supplies.

"At 5:30 am [0430 GMT] we had a queue of 100 to 130 people, and it's not getting any shorter, but rather getting longer," fireworks dealer and pyrotechnist Oliver Graetzer told dpa. Graetzer has around 250 items on offer.

In the town of Kehl, which sits right across the border from Strasbourg, police officers were pelted by an unknown perpetrator with fireworks as they were monitoring a major rush on two low-cost stores.

The new year traditionally kicks off with a bang across Germany, with millions of residents lighting firecrackers and rockets in private settings alongside massive shows in major cities.

German law allows pyrotechnics to be sold nationwide on the three working days leading up to New Year's Eve starting at midnight. Online shops are also allowed to deliver pre-ordered fireworks to customers' doorsteps during that period.

Setting off pyrotechnics is only allowed on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, though further restrictions apply in many cities, where using fireworks is only permitted between 6 pm and 7 am.

Setting off fireworks near churches, hospitals, children's homes, retirement homes and buildings that are particularly susceptible to fire is illegal.

Revellers regularly suffer serious injuries, sometimes even fatal ones, while handling pyrotechnics, with homemade explosive devices and powerful illegal fireworks known as "ball bombs" seen as particularly dangerous.

Carelessness with fireworks cost five men their lives on New Year's Eve in Germany last year.

According to an analysis by the AOK health insurance company, the number of hospital admissions due to fireworks injuries on New Year's Eve over the past 10 years averaged around 530 cases, which is about 2.6 times higher than on normal weekdays and even about 4.4 times higher than on average weekends.

Every year, medical experts, police officers as well as environmental and animal rights activists call for a ban on the sale of fireworks, echoed by the Berlin fire brigade on Monday.

"We welcome any kind of regulation," fire brigade spokesman Vinzenz Kasch told public broadcaster RBB's Inforadio. He recommended that restrictions start with limiting sales "because the problem is the irresponsible use of New Year's Eve fireworks."

The Association of the Pyrotechnic Industry (VPI) expects 10% to 15% more goods to be sold than last year. According to its own figures, the industry recorded sales of €197 million ($232 million) in 2024, compared to €180 million in 2023.

In Meppen, a young man sitting outside a shop early Monday morning said his budget for fireworks was €500 to €600. He expects many customers to come from the Netherlands, where a ban on fireworks for private individuals will come into force on January 1 after an increase in violence in recent years.

According to a new survey for the TÜV association, around one in five German residents (22%) plan to set off private fireworks at New Year, while three-quarters (74%) will not.

"It is a minority who set off private fireworks, rockets or other pyrotechnic items on New Year's Eve," said TÜV director Joachim Bühler.

The survey, carried out by opinion research institute Civey, found clear differences between age groups, with 43% of 18- to 29-year-olds and 39% of 30- to 39-year-olds saying they want to use pyrotechnics during New Year's celebrations.

In contrast, 29% of 40 to 49-year-olds set off fireworks, dropping down to 10% for over-65s.