Fires, injuries as rogue fireworks incidents explode during celebrations
At the Dromana Drive-In on the Mornington Peninsula, tightly packed New Year’s Eve revelers stood and watched a grass fire ignited by fireworks that sent long orange flames and huge clouds of smoke meters behind movie screens.
Police questioned a 16-year-old boy in Lorne after a flare went off in the middle of the crowd during a fireworks display planned for 9.30pm on the Great Ocean Road.
Officers said it was disappointing people across the state were taking risks with illegal and dangerous fireworks.
They arrested 18 people overnight for a range of offenses including assault, driving and property offences, and detected two drink drivers who were almost twice the limit; One hit .123 in Sorrento and the other hit .90 in Altona. The second driver in Sorrento achieved a score of 0.78.
Police also identified two drug drivers, one from Altoona and the other from Cape Woolamai on Phillip Island.
“We saw great behavior from the majority of the crowds throughout the night, with people heeding our advice to celebrate safely and responsibly,” said Belinda Jones, state police commander on New Year’s Eve.
Two men were taken to hospital following the attack on Lygon Street.Credit: Nine News
“There were a small number of people who went too far and chose to do the wrong thing. All reported incidents were resolved quickly without causing any disruption to the wider community.”
Hundreds of thousands of people celebrated New Year’s Eve in Melbourne and 500 police officers were deployed in the city to patrol the celebrations. They were among more than 2,300 officers in total.
Police had the power to search anyone for weapons under “designated area” rules in the Melbourne CBD, St Kilda and Geelong, and found a 17-year-old boy at Flinders Street Station with an angle grinder, balaclava, gloves and other items suspected of being used for breaking and entering.
He was charged and released on bail to appear in juvenile court at a later date.
Three separate criminals attacked a 15-year-old boy on Southbank Promenade in the early hours of New Year’s Day, punching him in the face and losing a tooth.
In another incident, a police helicopter and highway patrol chased a car in south-west Melbourne, ultimately blocking the passengers, aged 15, 23 and 26, with stop sticks at Williams Landing.
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Police asked anyone with information about the events on New Year’s Eve to contact Crime Stoppers.
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