Düsseldorf/Cologne (dpa/lnw) - After two new years with corona measures, people in North Rhine-Westphalia celebrated New Year's Eve again without major restrictions. There was a lot of gunfire - and it was often aggressive.
According to a spokesman, the police in Düsseldorf deployed on New Year's Eve with "various rioters and people hitting each other". The operations were spread across the entire city area. According to a dpa reporter, Düsseldorf's old town was "crammed full". There were initially no reports of injuries in the early New Year's morning.
According to a spokeswoman, the police in Cologne were on New Year's Eve with hundreds of forces "at different hotspots". With increasing alcohol consumption, firecrackers were also fired in the direction of people, said a police spokeswoman. In addition, with increasing alcohol levels, there were also minor arguments and bullying.
As usual on New Year's Eve, more police officers than usual were on duty. NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul had said that he hoped that after two years without fireworks, people would be careful with them "and keep their hands off illegal fireworks". That helps the police, fire brigade and rescue services.
In some large cities in North Rhine-Westphalia, no firecracker zones had been set up for safety reasons on New Year's Eve. In Cologne, Düsseldorf, Bielefeld and Dortmund, for example, fireworks could only be set off outside the restricted zones at the turn of the year.
