4 dead, more than 20 injured in New Year’s fireworks-related incident in Hawaii
At least four people have died and around 20 others were injured when illegal fireworks blew up in a house in Hawaii almost exactly as the clock struck midnight for New Year’s Day.
First responders say they first got 911 calls at a minute to midnight — as videos online show the sky around the Salt Lake-Aliamanu area of Honolulu lighting up in a huge explosion.
Two people were declared dead at the scene, with the death toll later rising to four, according to a report by Hawaii News Now.
At least 18 others were also hospitalized, officials said, with others still fighting for their lives.
Rescuers said that the fireworks exploded outside a house — with Mayor Rick Blangiardi blaming “illegal fireworks.”
“It is with both frustration and sorrow that I address the tragedy,” the mayor told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser.
“A massive explosion caused by what appears to be illegal fireworks claimed at least three lives,” he said — before the tally rose to four — and “left over 20 others critically injured.”
“This incident is a painful reminder of the danger posed by illegal fireworks, which put lives at risk, drain our first responder resources, and disrupt our communities.”
Officials have yet to elaborate on exactly how the fireworks blew up.
One local told Hawaii News Now that he heard a low explosion before he started to see first responders arrive on scene.
“I heard what seemed to be a low blast and I turned my phone to see what was going on and it was a low blast and then five to 10 minutes later a lot of commotion ambulance, fire, police,” the man said. “It was pretty tragic.”
Emergency medical workers set up on scene to tend to those with the most severe injuries and sent them off to local trauma centers.
Honolulu EMS Director Jim Ireland said the incident is like “nothing I have ever seen in EMS.”
“Some of the folks who were here who have been to war, who have been in combat, said it reminded them of things they have seen in combat,” Ireland said.
The injuries included burns and “blast-type injuries,” officials said.
The Honolulu police hours after the tragedy said the “scene remains closed” and said the investigation into the incident was still underway.
There were multiple 911 calls in Honolulu for fireworks-related injuries beginning just before 10 p.m. and continuing until after midnight, including for a 14-year-old boy with a hand injury after a firework went off while he was holding it.
Medical workers at the scene suspect the deadly incident began after a firework went off in the hand of a 14-year-old boy, according to a report by Newsweek.
At least 3 dead, multiple injured following massive New Year's Eve fireworks explosion in Hawaii
At least three people are dead and two dozen are injured following a New Year’s Eve fireworks explosion in a Honolulu residential neighborhood, officials said.
The explosion occurred at a house 3 miles west of Fort Shafter, the headquarters of U.S. Army Pacific. Videos posted to social media by neighbors show a rapid series of bursts creating a blinding light next to the house as fireworks erupted around the city.
Emergency personnel found “dozens of victims” when they arrived at a house just after midnight Wednesday in response to a reported explosion, Dr. James Ireland, director of Honolulu’s Department of Emergency Services, said at a news conference Wednesday morning.
“I’ve been in EMS for over 30 years, and this is probably one of the worst calls I’ve ever been on as far as just the immense tragedy and amount of patients and severity of the injuries,” Ireland said.
Officials have not yet released a cause of the deadly explosion.
Honolulu Emergency Medical Services paramedic supervisor Sunny Johnson said at the early morning news conference — as fireworks continued to go off in the background — that 20 patients were taken to various hospitals and that two people were pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities unsure how many victims may have been injured and left before emergency services arrived. Mayor Rick Blangiardi later put the death toll at three in a statement.
“This incident is a painful reminder of the danger posed by illegal fireworks, which put lives at risk, drain our first responder resources, and disrupt our communities,” Blangiardi said. “Year after year, a minority of individuals recklessly endanger us all. This is absurd and unacceptable.”
Aerial fireworks require a pyrotechnic permit under Hawaiian state law. However, only a small minority of attempts to prosecute those violating fireworks restrictions result in guilty verdicts or pleas, and they usually result in only minor fines, according to a Honolulu Civil Beat analysis.
New Year’s Eve fireworks have a long history in Hawaii. For decades, lawmakers have struggled to quell the widespread use of them across the state. A multiagency task force was established in 2010 to curb illegal fireworks, which, in addition to injuring people and pets and damaging property, had become a strain on public safety agencies.
Dozens of people are injured every year in fireworks-related injuries on New Year’s Eve, although the number decreased from a high of 112 in 2009 to 42 in 2019, according to a Hawaiian legislative report that year.
Five people were injured in four other incidents involving fireworks in Oahu, NBC affiliate KHNL of Honolulu reported.
A fireworks explosion in the Honolulu area has killed 3 people and injured at least 20
HONOLULU (AP) — A New Year’s Eve fireworks explosion in a Honolulu-area neighborhood killed at least three people and critically injured 20 others , authorities said.
The accident occurred just before midnight outside a home, the Honolulu Fire Department said in a statement. The neighborhood is near Honolulu’s international airport and a joint U.S. Air Force and Navy base and a little more than 2 miles (3.22 kilometers) east of the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial, which honors sailors who died in the attack on Pearl Harbor that drew the U.S. into World War II.
Two people were declared dead at the scene, and the other 20 victims were transported to hospitals, according to Honolulu Emergency Medical Services.
“I’ve been in EMS over 30 years and this is probably one of the worst calls I’ve ever been on as far as the immense tragedy and amount of patients and severity of the injuries,” Honolulu Emergency Services Department Director Dr. Jim Ireland said in a news conference early Wednesday.
A statement from Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi put the death toll at three and said more than 20 people were injured critically.
“This incident is a painful reminder of the danger of illegal fireworks, which put lives at risk, drain our first responder resources, and disrupt our communities,” Blangiardi said.
Several social media posts overnight showed video of home fireworks being set off over a wide swath of the city. Officials reported four other serious fireworks injuries unrelated to the blast.
The fire department said it was investigating the cause of the blast and had no details about how the accident occurred. It said there was no fire at the home. The victims were not immediately identified.
Fireworks explosion kills 3 people, injures 20 in Hawaii
A New Year’s Eve fireworks explosion in a Honolulu-area neighborhood killed at least three people and injured 20 others, authorities said.
The accident occurred just before midnight outside a home, the Honolulu Fire Department said in a statement. The neighborhood is near Honolulu’s international airport and a joint U.S. Air Force and Navy base and a little more than 2 miles east of the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial, which honors sailors who died in the attack on Pearl Harbor drawing the U.S. into World War II.
Two people were declared dead at the scene, and the other 20 victims were transported to hospitals, according to Honolulu Emergency Medical Services.
“I’ve been in EMS over 30 years and this is probably one of the worst calls I’ve ever been on as far as the immense tragedy and amount of patients and severity of the injuries,” Honolulu Emergency Services Department Director Dr. Jim Ireland said in a news conference early Wednesday.
A statement from Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi put the death toll at three and said more than 20 people were injured critically.
“This incident is a painful reminder of the danger of illegal fireworks, which put lives at risk, drain our first responder resources, and disrupt our communities,” Blangiardi said.
Several social media posts overnight showed video of home fireworks being set off over a wide swath of the city. Officials reported four other serious fireworks injuries unrelated to the blast.
The fire department said it was investigating the cause of the blast and had no details about how the accident occurred. It said there was no fire at the home. The victims were not immediately identified.
