By DONALD WITTKOWSKI
An explosion occurred while fireworks were being shot off from a barge during Sea Isle City’s Fourth of July celebration, but no one was injured.
“The most important thing is that no one was injured,” Sea Isle Mayor Leonard Desiderio said in a news release. “Even though there was a problem with the fireworks show, it was still a great Fourth of July in Sea Isle City.”
The fireworks display got underway at 9 p.m. Monday as planned, but about two minutes into the show there were occasional gaps in the pyrotechnics being launched from a barge anchored in the ocean off the 50th Street beach.
A short time later, there was an explosion on the barge apparently caused by one of the 6-inch fireworks shells igniting inside its tube before it could launch into the air. The explosion resulted in further delays and a shortened fireworks show overall, according to the release.
“It lost its integrity somehow and that’s what exploded,” city spokeswoman Katherine Custer said of the fireworks shell.
Custer did not immediately know how many employees from the fireworks company were on the barge, but noted that everyone was protected from the explosion by a solid metal safety box known as a “shooter shack.”
“They were safe during the explosion because they were in the shooter shack,” she said.
Video Courtesy of CBS 3 Philly
Both the fireworks barge and a tugboat returned safely to their dock after the show ended, according to the release.
Sea Isle officials were told that all safety precautions were in place prior to and during the show.
“There are a lot of codes and regulations that go along with fireworks,” Custer said. “It appears that all of the participants were following all of the rules.”
Custer was not sure whether a formal investigation of the explosion would be conducted by the city or an outside agency.
In the meantime, Sea Isle is currently working with the fireworks company, Pyrotechnico, of New Castle, Pa., on a credit for the portion of the pyrotechnics display that was not launched. Sea Isle paid the company $49,000 to stage the show, Custer said.
Overall, it is estimated that nearly two-thirds of the fireworks that were intended to be part of the show were launched successfully.
“Two-thirds of the shells were shot off. One-third or more of the shells were lost,” Custer said.
Social media was filled with photos and comments posted by people who saw the explosion but were unsure what had happened. Many of the posters expressed hope that no one had been injured. Others described the scene as “scary.”
“Yes something definitely happened on the fireworks barge,” Craig Rothe wrote. “We saw multiple fireworks shot sideways across the barge into the water. Yeah, not good. Hoping no one got hurt.”
“This was very scary to watch!! Praying that (all) are safe!! Megan Depman posted.
