Fourth of July Accident Sends Dozens to Hospital

05 Jul, 2013

As many as 10,000 Fourth of July revelers were just settling into their seats for the fireworks show at a Simi Valley park when a bright plume of red and white bursts spread across the ground, injuring 28 people and sending others fleeing for safety.

Police in the town northwest of Los Angeles were still investigating what caused Thursday night’s explosion, but early indications suggest a wooden platform designed and built to hold the fireworks gave way and tipped.

“For some unknown reasons the structure that holds these ordinances collapsed and caused them to be firing into the crowd,” Simi Valley police Cmdr. Stephanie Shannon.

Four people were listed in serious condition, but their injuries were not considered life-threatening. Sixteen more were taken to hospitals with minor to moderate injuries. The remainder were treated at the park where emergency crews, already on hand as a safety precaution, set up a triage area.

A video clip of the Simi Valley accident that aired on KCAL-TV shows a pair of firework blasts at or near the ground. Another clip, posted on YouTube and shot from a distance, shows three ground-level bursts. The fireworks continue for almost another minute before stopping.

Authorities estimate people were 900 feet away from where the fireworks were being launched. One police officer who ran into the crowd when the blasts occurred had shrapnel tear through his leather belt and his clothing, Shannon said. He had minor injuries to his back.

The annual July Fourth celebration has been sponsored by the city and the local Rotary Club for the past 43 years. Shannon said she had no information about the company hired for the fireworks show.

Simi Valley, home to the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, is about 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles.

AP

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