Hawaii governor Josh Green described the ‘extraordinarily grotesque’ scene he witnessed after an amateur tried to set off fireworks in Honolulu on New Years Eve, causing a massive explosion that killed three people and injured more than two dozen others.
The unidentified individual was among other New Years Eve revelers in a residential parking lot after midnight, when he dropped a fireworks ‘cake’ – a cluster of tubes that hold the rockets, Honolulu Police Chief Joe Logan announced at a news conference Wednesday night.
An aerial shell then fell into a crate containing other fireworks, setting off the explosion.
‘Here’s an individual that’s not a professional to the best of my knowledge, unprofessional at fireworks, and here we have a tragic loss,’ Logan said.
‘Neighbors, families and friends are now either deceased or in the hospitals because of what appears to be careless acts.’
Footage posted online showed a sudden series of uncontrolled fireworks explosions going off at ground level in rapid succession, in contrast to those in the air.
Another video shot at ground level showed the explosions causing chaos in the streets as people ran for their lives.
Two people were pronounced dead at the scene, and a 23-year-old female later also succumbed to her injuries.
Twenty-three adults and two juveniles were also injured in the explosion, which Gov. Green said left what looked like a ‘war zone’ in its wake.
Hawaii governor Josh Green described the ‘extraordinarily grotesque’ scene he witnessed after an amateur tried to set off fireworks in Honolulu on New Years Eve
Police say the amateur pyrotechnic accidentally sparked a massive explosion when an aerial shell then fell into a crate containing other fireworks
‘The gentle part of it was you see one boxing glove and you see one Birkenstock shoe from a child,’ he said.
‘The truth is that people had traumatic injuries so badly that brain material was across the sidewalk from the veracity of this explosion and we want people to hear that because that is what is really possible with these explosive fireworks.
‘Now I know people have the debate year after year after year, “Don’t take our fireworks away,” – literally some of the deceased had injuries that were that tragic, that traumatic,’ the governor continued.
‘We’re talking about the worst possible war zone that took their lies, and that will continue to happen if we don’t take, as a society, real action.’
‘It’s not just losing a finger, it’s extraordinarily grotesque events and in the next couple of days, it’s entirely likely that some of the people that didn’t even look that bad will die because their lungs were burned out – and that’s what you happen to see when explosions happen right in front of you,’ Green warned.
‘So I hope everyone’s thinking about this, because it’s going to happen next year and the year after and the year after if we don’t, as a society, stop the aerials in communities,’ he said as he announced he is calling for possession of fireworks over 50 pounds to be made a felony.
Violations would be punishable by five years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines under the governor’s plan.
When asked whether he would support a complete ban on fireworks, Green replied: ‘If that’s what’s necessary to save lives, we’ll pursue that.’
Green described the residential area that was affected by the explosion as looking like a ‘war zone’ at a news conference Wednesday evening
Two people were pronounced dead at the scene, and a 23-year-old female later also succumbed to her injuries
Under current law, aerial fireworks require a pyrotechnic permit, and officials have said it did not appear that the individual who was shooting off the fireworks was doing so legally.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms is also investigating the incident.
But that was not the only fireworks-related accident to hit Hawaii on New Years.
In a separate incident, a 14-year-old boy was injured when a firework exploded in his hand in the Kalihi neighborhood.
He was treated at the scene then rushed to a trauma center for advanced treatment, Honolulu Emergency Medical Services said.
A third incident caught on film showed a police car hit by fireworks that exploded underneath it, but the officers were able to drive through it without injury.
