A family Fourth of July celebration turned tragic when a Marion man went to check on a firework shell that had not fired when expected.
41-year-old James Drake was killed Saturday night after suffering extensive trauma to the face in a fireworks accident.
Around 10:40 p.m., Marion Police were called to a parking lot in the 3200 block of South Washington Street.
Grant County Coroner Chris Butche said, “I think he approached one and it went off and struck him in the face.”
Drake was rushed to Marion General Hospital where he died about an hour later.
Coroner Butche ruled the cause of death accidental due to blunt force trauma to the face.