17 injured as 'controlled' detonation of illegal fireworks by police goes wrong in US

LOS ANGELES: At least 17 people, including nine police officers, sustained injuries when a “controlled” detonation of illegal fireworks by the authorities went horrifically wrong in Los Angeles, US.  

According to the details, police called in a bomb squad on Wednesday evening after a tip led them to seize some 5,000 pounds of illegal home-made and China-manufactured pyrotechnics.

Addressing a press conference, Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore said that three box trucks and a 53-foot trailer were brought in to load up the fireworks and move them to a safe location.

However, ‘improvised explosives’ also were found that were too dangerous to move. He described them as 40 home-made devices the size of Coca-Cola cans with simple fuses and 200 smaller but similar devices. The police chief said that the material was taken to a ‘total containment vehicle.’.

“This vessel should have been able to safely dispose of that material. And you saw the resulting damage, and the total catastrophic failure of that containment vehicle”

Moore said, “Something happened in that containment vehicle that should not have happened, and we don’t know why. But we intend to find out why.”

The explosion knocked a nearby car on its side, smashed the windows of several others and blew out windows in a neighboring home.

One news helicopter pilot said the blast shook his aircraft, and some residents two blocks away say they were jolted by the explosion.

The Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed that nine police officers were injured, along with one ATF officer.  six civilians, ranging from 51 to 85 years old, were taken to a hospital, three with moderate and three with minor injuries, it said. One other person was treated at the scene but declined to be taken to hospital.

Authorities said that it was fortunate no one had been killed in the blast and spoke about the dangers of illegal fireworks, Los Angeles Times reported.

Moore said the ATF will also investigate the explosion, along with how the explosives were acquired and transported to the city.