I don't think that the fireworks or the fridges are the real problem. There are so many people with guns in that area, that New Year inevitably ends with numerous people getting hit by bullets suffering the effects of gravity after many hundreds of people fire their weapons into the sky.
That's not counting those who fire their weapons horizontally with wild abandon.
Let me tell a little story of my student days:
My best friend used to live in that light blue building in the foreground of this image
One building further back (low roofed place) used to be an disco called "San Lorenzo". It was a place that truly reflected the contradictions of South African life back then. You couldn't get in wearing sneakers, T-shirts or jeans, but once you were in almost anything was allowed. It was a place of cheap booze, bad music, cheap women and far too many totally drunken men often fighting over the women who were outnumbered by about 10 to one. Even looking at someone else's girlfriend was often an invitation for a round of massive fighting, and the police, who in those days were more like Nazi SS Stormtroopers in their regard for human life and health, were no stranger to the place.
Whenever a fight got too bad, the cops would simply through in about 10 tear gas grenades and then club everyone running out blinded by tears and coughing or vomiting their lungs out (Booze and tear gas don't mix well).
One night, me and my friend and his wife were on the balcony and as the disco was closing the usual drunken crowd of ruffians were gathering in the parking lot behind the disco. Some rich bugger (In those days people used to flaunt their BMW's and gold chains and stuff, which would almost certainly get them killed there today) was trying to drive his BMW out of the lot but was blocked by the crowd. When his blaring horn finally got the crowd exited enough, they surrounded and started shaking his car in their usual good natured fun. The guy in the BMW, not in the mood for such revelry, opened his door, got out, pulled out his gun and fired some shots into the air.
This of course only served to make the crowd howl with laughter, which drove the BMW man off his rocker. He then started shooting randomly into the crowd, and by some pulp fiction miracle didn't actually hit anybody. The crowd did however disperse somewhat, whereupon our brave BMW man got back in his car and drove off. End of story.
If that happened today, (disco burnt down years ago) there would be any number of people who would whip out their own guns and engage in a round of parking lot combat sport.
That's not counting those who fire their weapons horizontally with wild abandon.
Let me tell a little story of my student days:
My best friend used to live in that light blue building in the foreground of this image
One building further back (low roofed place) used to be an disco called "San Lorenzo". It was a place that truly reflected the contradictions of South African life back then. You couldn't get in wearing sneakers, T-shirts or jeans, but once you were in almost anything was allowed. It was a place of cheap booze, bad music, cheap women and far too many totally drunken men often fighting over the women who were outnumbered by about 10 to one. Even looking at someone else's girlfriend was often an invitation for a round of massive fighting, and the police, who in those days were more like Nazi SS Stormtroopers in their regard for human life and health, were no stranger to the place.
Whenever a fight got too bad, the cops would simply through in about 10 tear gas grenades and then club everyone running out blinded by tears and coughing or vomiting their lungs out (Booze and tear gas don't mix well).
One night, me and my friend and his wife were on the balcony and as the disco was closing the usual drunken crowd of ruffians were gathering in the parking lot behind the disco. Some rich bugger (In those days people used to flaunt their BMW's and gold chains and stuff, which would almost certainly get them killed there today) was trying to drive his BMW out of the lot but was blocked by the crowd. When his blaring horn finally got the crowd exited enough, they surrounded and started shaking his car in their usual good natured fun. The guy in the BMW, not in the mood for such revelry, opened his door, got out, pulled out his gun and fired some shots into the air.
This of course only served to make the crowd howl with laughter, which drove the BMW man off his rocker. He then started shooting randomly into the crowd, and by some pulp fiction miracle didn't actually hit anybody. The crowd did however disperse somewhat, whereupon our brave BMW man got back in his car and drove off. End of story.
If that happened today, (disco burnt down years ago) there would be any number of people who would whip out their own guns and engage in a round of parking lot combat sport.