The boy, who lived in a Roma camp in the northern Italian city of Asti, died in hospital just past midnight after a firecracker severely injured his abdomen.  

At the same time, the International Organization for the Protection of Animals (OIPA) called for a ban on fireworks in a post showing bird carcasses littering a street in Rome. 

Despite the boy’s tragic death, a local ban on personal fireworks displays in Rome and nationwide lockdown over New Year’s Eve resulted in unusually subdued celebrations, with the number of accidents requiring firefighters to be called out down by two thirds. 

Firefighters carried out 229 interventions across Italy over New Year’s Eve, compared to 686 last year, the department of public security said on Twitter. 

Of the 79 people injured, 23 were hospitalised.

Most of the call-outs were in Lazio, the region surrounding Rome, followed by Campania.

A woman was taken to hospital in Naples after she was hit on the head by a firecracker splinter while taking the rubbish out.

A man in Milan lost two of his fingers in the most serious incident there, while others across Italy reported injuries to their hands and close to their eyes.

Eight of the total injured were children.

In the Italian capital, hundreds of birds died from fireworks displays, with animal rights groups calling it a “massacre”.

Footage of streets near Rome’s main train station showed scores of birds – mostly starlings – scattered lifeless on the ground.

The cause of the deaths was not clear, but the OIPA said it appeared to be related to a particularly loud display of firecrackers and fireworks in the leafy neighbourhood that many birds use to nest.

“It could be that they died from fear,” Loredana Diglio, a spokeswoman for the organisation, said.

“They can fly up together and hit each other, or crash into windows or electric power lines.

“Let’s not forget they can also die of heart attacks.”

Fireworks displays each year cause distress and injury to both wild and domestic animals, Diglio noted.

The Italian branch of OIPA has called for a ban on selling firecrackers and fireworks for personal use, citing the threat to animals.