1 Now that a firecracker ban has made much of urban China quiet at the lunar New Year, fires and injuries have gone down sharply, a report said Thursday.
2 Beijing had an average of one fire every 48 seconds during the holiday before the ban was imposed in 1993. This year, the capital celebrated a quiet holiday from Jan. 30 to Feb. 4 without a single fire, the China Daily said.
3 Firecrackers have been banned in 59 large and medium-sized cities and in more than 100 counties across China in recent years.
4 This year China had five major fires during the holiday week, a 54 percent decline from last year, the report said. Two people were killed, representing an 80 percent decline in the death toll.
5 Firecrackers are still popular in many rural areas across China during the holiday. Over the past three years, China has had an average of 600 fires on the eve of the lunar New Year, mainly from firecrackers, the report said.
6 Officials said the decrease in fires this year was also due to greater efforts to inspect public places for fire hazards. Many of China's major fires have been blamed on lax enforcement of safety codes.
7 The State Council issued an urgent order for wide-scale fire inspections late last year after a fire on Dec. 8 killed 325 people, 288 of them children, in a theater in Karamay, in western Xinjiang province, where only one of eight exits was unlocked.

Firecrackers are still popular in many rural areas across China during the holiday . Over the past three years , China has had an average of 600 fires on the eve of the lunar New Year , mainly from firecrackers , the report said .
rural
Are firecrackers allowed in rural areas?