A Chicago dad was killed by a gruesome head injury from a Fourth of July firework after he went to check out an unexploded 12-inch mortar tube and it went off while he was holding it.
Neighbors reportedly found human remains on their property from the blast, and the Chicago Fire Department had hose down the garages and roadway in the alleyway where the blast happened, according to the Chicago Sun-Times and CBS Chicago.
Earl Lory, a 34-year-old father of two with a third child on the way, was setting off fireworks when one — described by neighbors as a “footlong mortar tube” — did not detonate. He went to investigate and was holding it in his hand when it blew up in front of him, according to the Chicago Police Department and media reports.
Lory “sustained trauma to the body,” the police said. The Sun-Times reports Lory died from head injuries. He was killed on the scene.
The Belmont Gardens alley where Lory set off the fireworks is a hot spot for holiday displays with large explosive devices, neighbors told the Sun-Times.
The Chicago Fire Department posted on X that the agency responded to at least 13 fireworks-related blazes overnight.
“One person was killed by delayed ignition of a mortar device, causing massive trauma,” the fire department said.
Detectives are still investigating the incident.
Meanwhile, in South Carolina, a father clad in a stars and stripes outfit and top hat was instantly killed when a lit firework on top of his head exploded, “traumatizing” his family.