600 holiday fireworks sellers are expected to fill the streets of Merida

More than 600 permits will be granted to fireworks vendors for the Christmas festivities….

MERIDA — The Christmas season is just around the corner, and with that is expected a huge influx of fireworks sellers to the streets in Merida.

The motivation is profits, since in only three days time they can earn around $30,000 or $40,000 pesos. The actual amount of money will depend on the product’s origin (if the fireworks are from Mexican or Chinese providers), although the permits are only to sell the Mexican product.

An anonymous source explained that the sales will start a week before Christmas, since in order to operate they must pay their permits to the Municipality, as well to pass a preventive course on protection and security provided by Civil Protection Department from the Government of Yucatan.

It is expected that in the Historic Center alone will be located between 100 and 150 vendors, while the rest of the 600 with permits will be divided in the south and west parts of the city, and in a smaller amount in the north and east of Merida.

On December 24 and 31, the sellers usually earn an income between $15 and $30 thousand pesos. Such profits depends on the zones of the city where the sellers are located, since the points with the highest demand of this product excluding the downtown are the south and west zones of Merida. It is in these areas where are registered the highest sales at the lowest prices of this product. The Merida east and north areas register the lowest sales but the highest prices influenced by the purchasing power of the people that live in the area.

The anonymous source said that Chinese origin fireworks are available in the markets of Lucas de Gálvez and San Benito, but also it is possible to get them at any small fireworks seller but with discretion because this isn’t a “legal” product.

“The difference between the Chinese product and the Mexican one is that the Asian has a better effect, it is more attractive, and the national one is not so much. Yes, it is more expensive than the national, but people prefer the Chinese ones,” said the fireworks vendor, who said he has been involved in this business for seven years.

For six days personal of the Municipality, State Civil Protection, the State Attorney General’s Office, as well as the Ministry of National Defense (Sedena) carry out surveillance operations in each of the fireworks sales posts. In each inspection, the seller is required to certify that he has permission to operate, that the vendor has a legal age and that he is wearing denim pants, a cotton shirt and closed shoes, as well as having a special seven-kilogram fire extinguisher. Prohibited are pregnant women, children or elderly people as sales partners.

Source: www.laverdadnoticias.com