State fire authorities have suspended the license of a fireworks company that left behind unexploded shells near the launching sites for several of their shows. On July 6, city workers mowing lawns in three separate Massachusetts towns ran over the undetonated fireworks, causing them to detonate under the workers’ lawnmowers. Fortunately, the individuals were uninjured, a fact State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan attributes to the size of the commercial mowers they were using.
According to Coan, the company responsible for leaving behind the shells is Pennsylvania-based Pyrotecnico. He also said that state fire code requires companies to search for unexploded shells the morning after a show. Officials are currently conducting an investigation to determine whether Pyrotecnico violated this regulation.
The shells were first found in Ware, when a mower struck a shell in one of the town’s parks. After workers searched the area, they found at least five additional shells left over from the June 30 fireworks show. On Monday, shells were found in Waltham, Stoughton and Worcester. The park in Ware in which the shells were initially found is frequented by children, according to Deputy Fire Chief Dan Danitis. Coan has issued an order suspending Pyrotecnico’s license to operate in Massachusetts and demanded that it return and search for unexploded shells in each of the thirteen towns where it staged displays.
Unexploded shells left behind by fireworks company detonate in three Massachusetts towns, The Boston Globe, July 11, 2012