THE HAGUE, Jan. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Dutch police reported Tuesday an increase of incidents by 8.9 percent compared to last year's New Year's Eve.
The amount of incidents related to fireworks rose by 12 percent and the violence against police officers increased from 27 incidents to 59 incidents. However, the total amount of arrests decreased to 328, 41 arrests less than last year.
According to the police, two people died due to accidents with fireworks in Enschede in the province of Overijssel and in Morra in the province of Friesland. In Scheveningen, The Hague, a bonfire of 48 meters high at the beach caused a rain of fire due to the strong wind and several fires and damage at buildings and vehicles near the coast. Nobody got injured.
The setting on fire of a wooden tower was according to tradition at the beach of The Hague, but the height of 48 meters was well above the limit of 35 meters. "The builders violated our agreement," The Hague mayor Pauline Krikke said. "We will evaluate this."
The national countdown moment was just like last Year in The Hague, with a fireworks show at the Hofvijver. During New Year's Eve in the Dutch capital Amsterdam, no major incidents occurred, although the total number of incident rose from 168 to 183, the number of arrests declined from 45 to 34 compared to last year.
