As New Year's Eve approaches, authorities are reminding the public to avoid using fireworks in residential areas and public spaces without proper authorisation.
Chief Inspector Ileni Shapumba, the Community Affairs Unit Commander for the Erongo Region, says fireworks may not be set off in any public place.
This includes parks, pavement or streets, shopping malls, and restaurants.
He further added that it is illegal to detonate fireworks within 500 meters of any hospital, clinic, petrol station, old-age home, nursing home, or animal welfare organisation or institution.
Shapumba says it is unlawful for any person to point or direct a firework at any other person, animal, building, or motor vehicle.
"It's the end of the year, New Year's Eve. Usually people celebrate the year in different styles, but we want to remind them to say there's a law regarding the discharge of fireworks in the municipal areas or the residential areas, and it's prohibited for people to discharge the fireworks. In the municipal or residential areas, anybody that wants to discharge fireworks should find a quaint place that is designated for that purpose, and you can go on and search your fireworks by those places, but you cannot disturb other people or the poor animals that are resting at the time that you are celebrating your new year."
Residents are urged to request permission from the municipality to display fireworks at an organised event.
"When it's New Year's and fireworks go off, we have a lot of problems surrounding our pets. The residents are cautioned to keep their eye on pets. Keep them indoors at that time. There will be only one designated area for fireworks, and that will be Independence Beach. No private show of fireworks will be entertained. We do not allow that. That's only the one area for fireworks that we will have to do during the season, but once again, please take care of your pets." Said Trevino Forbes, the mayor of Walvis Bay.
Blasius Goraseb, the mayor of Swakopmund, urged on educating the community "We can only really do some education into the community. It is against the law in the spirit of time to have fireworks openly because we care about our animals and we don't want to cause that shock onto the animals. That's mainly the reason why we are prohibiting the use of fireworks so we can only achieve that through public education just to caution our people and not to do fireworks"