Fireworks explosion in Hawaii kills at least 3 people, injures at least 20
A New Year's Eve fireworks explosion in a Honolulu-area neighborhood killed at least three people and critically injured at least 20 others, authorities said.
"It looked like a war zone," said Honolulu Fire Chief Sheldon K. Hao.
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 that drew the U.S. into World War II.
Two people were declared dead at the scene, and the other 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 critically injured.
"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.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green said several children under the age of 10 were among those severely injured. He compared the force of the explosion to a bomb.
"It was fireworks, but they were put together in a way that they were so explosive they took the table down, apparently, and then rocketed these fireworks into other caches of fireworks," he said.
At the news conference, Honolulu Police Chief Joe Logan described the chain of events that led to the blast.
"It appears that shortly after midnight, a person who attended the party lit an aerial cake, which is a container containing multiple aerial fireworks, in the driveway," he said. "The cake fell to the side and the aerial shot into crates that contained additional fireworks," setting off the explosion.
The fire department said it was investigating the cause of the blast, and said there was no fire at the home. The victims were not immediately identified.
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.
