A Fourth of July celebration in Chino, California, turned deadly after fireworks set off by neighbors reportedly sparked an explosion, killing one woman and injuring four other people, including a child.
Chino police said officers were called to the scene at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday after receiving a report of a vehicle fire.
When they arrived, officers found a vehicle engulfed in flames and several people suffering from serious injuries.
Investigators believe the blast happened after a large quantity of fireworks ignited, triggering the explosion.
Three adults and a juvenile were taken to nearby hospitals. One of the victims, identified only as a woman in her 20s, later died from her injuries.
Authorities said the two other adult victims were expected to survive, while the juvenile has since been released to a parent or guardian.
Nardio Del Rosario said his grandchildren were among those hurt in the explosion.
‘They were having a party, and I’m sure they were popping off fireworks,’ he told KTLA. ‘But what happened from there, we really don’t know yet.’
Bystanders are seen running away after a vehicle caught fire after fireworks exploded in Chino, California on Saturday night
Officers with the Chino Police Department in California said they were initially dispatched on a call about a vehicle fire at around 8.30pm. The burnt-out vehicle is pictured
Other witnesses described a chaotic scene as people ran from the area following the blast.
Gabriel Gilmore, for example, told ABC 7 how he was inside his mother’s house when he heard the blast and rushed outside to see what had happened.
‘It clearly looked like there was a bunch of illegal fireworks in the trunk,’ he said.
‘I don’t know how the trunk got lit up, but obviously, you could see from the video that the hatch was busted open and that was where the point of the explosion was.’
As part of the investigation, police detained Derion Tradon James Jr, a 28-year-old Hesperia resident, who was booked at the West Valley Detention Center on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter.
He is now being held on a $50,000 bail and is due to make his first court appearance on Thursday, KTLA reports.
Meanwhile, officers and fire personnel remained at the scene on Sunday to ensure the scene was safe and to evaluate any remaining fireworks, debris and related hazards, the Victor Valley News Group reports.
The Chino Police Department is leading the investigation into the explosion, and is working in conjunction with the Chino Valley Fire District.
Anyone with any further information about the incident is asked to call Detective Gregory at (909) 334 – 3136.
Multiple people had gathered in the neighborhood for a Fourth of July party, where it is believed they set off fireworks
The Chino Police Department is leading the investigation into the explosion, and is working in conjunction with the Chino Valley Fire District. Debris is pictured scattered across the scene on Sunday morning
But the explosion in Chino was just one of several fireworks-related fires across the Los Angeles area over the weekend.
In Wilmington, another man was hospitalized in critical condition after a fire burned multiple cars in a parking lot, the LA Fire Department reported.
The blaze began at an apartment building on Pacific Coast Highway around 8.38pm on Friday, and when firefighters arrived at the scene they found ‘what appeared to be potentially dangerous explosives/fireworks’ nearby.
An LAPD Bomb Squad assessment later determined that the explosive material found next to the vehicles involved was ‘commercial-grade fireworks.’
As the fire blazed, a nearby hotel and a two-story single-family home were evacuated, displacing 10 adults and two children.
More than 70 firefighters also responded to a fire at a commercial building in Los Angeles’ Harbor Gateway neighborhood just before 10pm on Saturday.
They were able to get the blaze under control shortly after 1am on Sunday, and authorities say no injuries were reported.
Other blazes were reported in Mission Hills, where firefighters put out a fire that burned down several cypress trees, torched two vehicles and raged close to homes, and in La Habra, where a two-alarm fire broke out in a commercial building on Saturday night.
No injuries were reported in either of those incidents, and the cause of the fire in La Habra remains under investigation.
