Jul 7, 2009 8:57 am US/Eastern
Teen Killed During Quakertown Fireworks Accident
QUAKERTOWN, Pa. (CBS 3) ―
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A teenage worker was killed after a misfired firework struck him in the neck.
CBS
A teenage worker was killed after an accident during the Quakertown Fourth of July fireworks show.
Quakertown Police said 19-year-old David Allen Walker, an employee of Zambelli Fireworks, was struck in the neck and chest by shrapnel after a firework misfired during Saturday night's celebration in Memorial Park.
The Bucks County Fire Marshal said a single firework malfunctioned and exploded in a containment bunker at about 9:30 p.m. Wooden debris from the explosion struck Walker, causing severe blunt force trauma.
Emergency crews rushed Walker, of Pulaski, Pa., to St. Luke's Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Following the accident, the fireworks show was brought to a halt and approximately 10,000 attending the event were evacuated from the park.
"The fireworks display basically stopped immediately once the accident happened and the fire crew hosed down the area so that we could get in," said Quakertown Police Captain Scott Fogel.
Doug Taylor, of Zambelli Fireworks, released a statement that read in part:
"The highly qualified staff of Zambelli Fireworks is trained on a regular basis. Safety is, and always has been, our number one priority."
Pennsylvania State Police, the ATF and the Bucks County Fire Marshall's office are investigating the tragic incident.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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