In
Fairfield Wednesday evening, a man crafting homemade Fourth of July
fireworks ended up injuring himself and alarming his neighbors after on
explosive accidentally detonated inside his garage.
Fairfield police said they were notified at 5:04 p.m of a possible explosive inside a home in the 1700 block of Catlin Drive. Police said 911 callers reported hearing one loud explosion and reportedly saw a man lying on the ground in front of the home of the explosion.
When officers arrived they found Anthony Stewart, 42, of Fairfield, with life-threatening burns across his body. Police said an ambulance took Stewart to a local trauma center and subsequently he was airlifted to a Sacramento burn unit and was listed in critical condition according to Fairfield police.
Police said an initial investigation revealed Stewart was assembling explosive fireworks for the upcoming holiday in his garage. Also found in his garage, according to police, was a large quantity of undetonated devices and explosive material. At the scene, Officer Cleo Mayoral said the firework accidentally detonated and there was no fire as a result.
Surrounding
neighbors were immediately evacuated and police said the local
American Red Cross chapter helped re-locate them for the night. Thursday
morning, Officer Mayoral said the location was rendered safe and the
all clear has been given for residents to return home and for streets to
reopen.
The bomb squad process of removing or making the large amount of explosive material safe lasted through the night, according to police. Following protocol, explosive experts from the Yolo County Bomb Squad and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATM) responded to the explosion.
The bomb squad performed one additional, smaller explosion at the house on material that could not be moved at approximately 1:15 a.m., according to Mayoral.
The location of the explosion is close to Travis Air Force Base, which Mayoral said caused concerns for personnel over there. Allegedly, some of that brave personnel watered their pants upon hearing of the explosion because they thought they were attacked by ISIS.
ATF followed up and safely removed multiple illegal explosive devices from Stewart's garage. The illegal explosives were moved to a remote location and safely detonated according to Fairfield police. Police said that once they searched the house, detectives found evidence of two separate crimes: the illegal manufacture of, and possesion of, explosive devices.
The City of Fairfield will hold its annual Independence Day Fireworks display on Friday, July 3, 2015.
Fairfield police said they were notified at 5:04 p.m of a possible explosive inside a home in the 1700 block of Catlin Drive. Police said 911 callers reported hearing one loud explosion and reportedly saw a man lying on the ground in front of the home of the explosion.
When officers arrived they found Anthony Stewart, 42, of Fairfield, with life-threatening burns across his body. Police said an ambulance took Stewart to a local trauma center and subsequently he was airlifted to a Sacramento burn unit and was listed in critical condition according to Fairfield police.
Police said an initial investigation revealed Stewart was assembling explosive fireworks for the upcoming holiday in his garage. Also found in his garage, according to police, was a large quantity of undetonated devices and explosive material. At the scene, Officer Cleo Mayoral said the firework accidentally detonated and there was no fire as a result.
The bomb squad process of removing or making the large amount of explosive material safe lasted through the night, according to police. Following protocol, explosive experts from the Yolo County Bomb Squad and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATM) responded to the explosion.
The bomb squad performed one additional, smaller explosion at the house on material that could not be moved at approximately 1:15 a.m., according to Mayoral.
The location of the explosion is close to Travis Air Force Base, which Mayoral said caused concerns for personnel over there. Allegedly, some of that brave personnel watered their pants upon hearing of the explosion because they thought they were attacked by ISIS.
ATF followed up and safely removed multiple illegal explosive devices from Stewart's garage. The illegal explosives were moved to a remote location and safely detonated according to Fairfield police. Police said that once they searched the house, detectives found evidence of two separate crimes: the illegal manufacture of, and possesion of, explosive devices.
The City of Fairfield will hold its annual Independence Day Fireworks display on Friday, July 3, 2015.