Independence Day is an annual celebration of the birth of the United States as a free and sovereign country. Unfortunately, the holiday also produces a surge in hospital admissions, as patriots suffer various firework-related injuries each year.
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Last week, two Orange County teenagers suffered life-altering injuries during a fireworks accident on the Fourth of July.
Maria Escalante said that one of her twin sons lost several fingers on his right hand, which was completely mutilated after he and a friend picked up an illegal firework from the street in Anaheim. She said that he lit the firework, which then exploded in their hands.
"He's not doing good. He's going to be in the hospital for about two months. His hands are literally butchered," Escalante said.
Injured Teen May Have to Amputate Hands After Firework Accident
Escalante was informed by doctors that if there is enough blood circulation in her son's remaining fingers, they will do their best to repair his hands. However, if the circulation is no sufficient, they will have to move forward with amputation.
"They're going to do their best to reconstruct his hands, but they can't guarantee nothing. They're going to see if he has proper circulation going to the last fingers he has, to the few fingers he has left in his hand."
Escalante went back to the scene on S. Mountain View Avenue and found pieces of the illegal firework. She is demanding that the Anaheim Police Department investigate the pipeline of the pyrotechnics.
"[The other teen's] mother told me that every year they sell illegal fireworks here. I don't know if the Anaheim Police Department knows about this or not, but they need to start investigating," she said, adding the other boy's hands were also badly injured.
She said that she plans to take the evidence to her lawyer.
Escalante said that her injured twin's brother called her screaming after witnessing the blast, and that he's still traumatized.
Several Americans Have Been Injured by Fireworks
Sadly, Escalante's son was not the only person injured by fireworks on the Fourth of July.
Last week, a 37-year-old man tragically died after fireworks struck him in the head. The incident happened in Long Island, New York.
Across the country at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, Utah, several concertgoers were injured at a Jonas Brothers show after fireworks began firing directly into the crowd.
