The importance of fireworks in Chinese New Year

For days and nights over the coming week, cities and villages across China will echo with the sound of fireworks to see in the new lunar year of the snake.

Every year, there are reports of accidents involving fireworks, only last week a truck transporting fireworks exploded killing five people and causing a road to collapse.

But, as Celia Hatton reports from Beijing, despite the danger, the noise and the pollution, for most Chinese people, the new year celebrations wouldn't be complete without them.