BOCAUE, Bulacan - (UPDATED) An illegal firecracker dubbed "Goodbye De Lima" sent Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Director General Ronald "Bato" dela Rosa and his men scrambling for safety during an inspection of the pyrotechnics center here on Thursday.

Video footage of ABS-CBN News shows Dela Rosa presenting the triangular firecracker to members of the media and even joking that he had nothing to do with its name.

His laugh, however, turned to silence when the firecracker emitted gray particles initially mistaken for smoke.

He then dropped the firecracker and ran for cover.

An officer grabbed the firecracker, threw it on the road, and doused it with water.

He told Dela Rosa, "Nahulog lang, sir, 'yung powder. Nag-leak lang yung powder, sir."

'NAKAKATAKOT EH'

A grinning Dela Rosa later admitted that the firecracker made him panic.

"Iyung firecracker na iyun, nakakatakot eh. Umusok bigla, 'di ba? Napakalakas ng power nung rebintador na iyun. Ewan ko kung may bad omen iyun o what. Ang importante, hindi tayo nasabugan," he said.

In jest, he also reporters that they cannot tease him about the incident because they panicked, too.

"Bahala na kung kantyawan niyo ako na tumakbo ako, okay lang sa akin iyun. Kayo nga, tumakbo din kayo. Iniwan n'yo kami e, patas lang tayo," he said.

COMBING THE FIRECRACKER CAPITAL

The "Goodbye De Lima" firecracker was among the illegal products seized by PNP from eleven vendors who had hidden their wares in backpacks.

The arrested vendors failed to prove they were authorized to sell the confiscated items which can produce sounds similar to the explosion of a bomb, police said.

Police destroyed some of the items and tasked local officials to dispose of the rest.

Bocaue Mayor Joni Villanueva, meanwhile, gave a tour of legitimate pyrotechnics stores in Halili Avenue, Barangay Turo.

"Sana po ang puntahan po natin ay yung mga legitimate na mga tindahan. Sila po yung may mga sariling pwesto at makikita naman po yung kanilang business permit ... Para rin po maturuan tayo sa proper handling ng mga paputok na ito," Villanueva said.

(We hope the public will patronize legitimate stores that have their own stalls and display their business permits... so they can teach us the proper handling of these firecrackers.)

Police also gave reminders on the features of contraband firecrackers.

"Dapat hindi sya overweight, hindi sya oversized, tapos hindi masyadong mabilis yung fuse, tapos hindi din mabagal," said Chief Superintendent Cesar Binag, head of the PNP Firearms and Explosive Office.

(It should not be overweight or oversized. Its fuse should also not burn too fast or too slow.)

-- With reports from Jorge Cariño, ABS-CBN News; Henry Atuelan, DZMM