While the Sheriff’s Department investigates what caused a Fourth of July fireworks display in San Marcos to go awry, witnesses to the accident are questioning how close is too close when it comes to watching pyrotechnics.
Investigators said the firework apparently malfunctioned, shooting sideways and ricocheting off a caretaker’s home in Bradley Park before blasting into a group of nearby spectators Sunday night.
The 9:20 p.m. incident occurred before the grand finale could be fired off and abruptly put an end to the show. An estimated 4,000 people were in attendance, with another 7,000 to 8,000 viewing the fireworks in the general vicinity, city spokeswoman Jenny Peterson said Tuesday.
San Elijo resident Joe Silva was lying in a nearby baseball field with his wife and children. The technicians doing the show seemed to be having trouble from the beginning, with awkward stops and starts, Silva said.
Then he saw the flash about three feet off the ground.
“People started screaming,” he said. “I saw a lady holding a kid saying, ‘Help us! Help us!’”
When the firework hit the building, it split into two pieces, said witness Jared Wyrick, who was at the home’s fence line with his 13-year-old son, Kane. READ MORE VIA SD UT
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Fireworks company had previous accidents VIA-NC TIMES
