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| Simi Valley fireworks explosion caused by early detonation - Los Angeles Times Posted: 05 Jul 2013 07:21 AM PDT Authorities on Friday said they believe at least one pyrotechnic device prematurely detonated in its mortar during a Fourth of July celebration in Simi Valley on Thursday night, causing a chain reaction that tipped over other pyrotechnics and launched them into the crowd of spectators. The major fireworks malfunction at Rancho Santa Susana Community Park at 9:20 p.m. injured at least 28 people, who suffered minor to severe injuries. An estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people were gathered to watch the professional fireworks display. Simi Valley police Cmdr. Blair Summey said that after the early detonation, a group of live canisters fell over like "dominoes." One or more of them fired into the crowd of spectators, the closest of whom were about 800 feet away. "These things were coming through low. They were skipping along the ground," Summey said. "Some of these projectiles, they were exploding as they were coming out of the canisters." The 28 victims ranged in age from 8 to 78 years old. A total of 20 people were taken by ambulance to area hospitals. Four suffered serious, but not life-threatening, injuries. One police officer was also struck in the back by a projectile that cut the leather on his belt, Summey said. The California Occupational Safety and Health Administration was notified and will also investigate the incident. The show was sponsored by the Rotary Club, which hired Bay Fireworks, a New York-based company that has produced events for Walt Disney World, NASA and the Republican National convention. Bay Fireworks said it had no immediate comment, but expected to release a statement sometime Friday morning. Photos: Simi Valley fireworks explosion Video footage showed fireworks exploding at ground level and into the crowd as people screamed and ran for cover. Police said that after the initial chaos, the crowd left in an orderly manner. "There was a big boom. Everybody started running down the street. People were screaming," said Justice Allen, 17, of Simi Valley. "Everybody was just terrified. People hid in bushes." Allen said she had just arrived at the park after getting off work when fireworks started flying over the fences and sparks passed by her and her friend. Another witness, Annisa Wynn, told KTLA-TV Channel 5 that the explosion occurred about two minutes into the show. Fireworks suddenly began shooting sideways along the ground into the crowd instead of up in the air, she said. "The fireworks were so close, you could see them on the ground," Wynn said. "It never happens this way. People were screaming." Amid the chaos, Ventura County firefighters set up a triage center in the park, where they treated adults and children, many of them hit by flying debris. Some people were taken by ambulance to area hospitals. Most of the injuries were described as shrapnel-like injuries or burns. No fatalities were reported. Taken to the hospital were four people with moderate to severe injuries and 16 with minor injuries. The rest were treated and released at the scene. Simi Valley police Cmdr. John Parks said the Fourth of July event was heavily staffed with police, park rangers and firefighters who were able to treat the injured almost immediately after the explosion. Parks also said the public cooperated with authorities and quickly evacuated the park after the blast. Hazciel Vidrio, 26, of Simi Valley, said he and his family have attended the event the last several years, but "this was completely unexpected." After four or five rockets went straight up, he said, there was a loud blast and he realized that something was wrong. "A lot of kids were screaming and crying," Vidrio said. "People were trying to get away from the fireworks as fast as they could and were running into each other." ALSO: Panic ensues in fireworks accident: 'It felt like a punch' Dramatics videos capture fireworks accident from many angles Fireworks company 'deeply regrets' Simi Valley explosion, injuries Twitter: @emfoxhall emily.foxhall@latimes.com |
| Screams on 911 recording were Trayvon Martin's, mother testifies - Los Angeles Times Posted: 05 Jul 2013 08:48 AM PDT Trayvon Martin's mother, Sybrina Fulton, says it was her son's voice heard screaming in the background of a 911 call. The mother of Trayvon Martin testified Friday that it is the voice of her son heard screaming on a recorded 911 call during his confrontation with George Zimmerman, charged with second-degree murder in the death of the unarmed teenager. Sybrina Fulton took the stand in Zimmerman's murder trial and said it is her son on the tape. Jahvaris Fulton then followed his mother on the stand and also testified that the screams belonged to his brother, Trayvon Martin. Zimmerman, then 28, and Martin, 17, had a confrontation in a gated community in Sanford, Fla., on Feb. 26, 2012. Zimmerman said he shot Martin in self-defense when the teenager attacked him. '; jQuery(document).ready(function(){ jQuery('#story-body-text').append(muskalsig); });GRAPHIC: Who's who in the Trayvon Martin case A neighbor called 911 to report the fight. In the background, screams can be heard, but it is unclear who is screaming. An FBI audio expert testified that science could not definitively identify the voice, but someone like a relative who was very familiar with the voice might be able to say who it was. The expert also warned against listener bias.Fulton had been expected to testify it was her son's voice, and her appearance on the ninth day of the prosecution putting in its case carried the drama that had been forecast. Prosecutor Bernie de la Rionda kept Fulton on the stand only a few minutes in her initial appearance, but the moments were emotional. Asked by De la Rionda if she has children, Fulton replied in a clear but slightly quavering voice: "My youngest son is Trayvon Benjamin Martin. He's in heaven." PHOTOS: The controversial case in pictures She then gave details of Martin's tattoos, noting that her son was right-handed and had two tattoos. One was on his right upper shoulder and showed praying hands with his grandmother's and great-grandmother's names. The other tattoo was on his left wrist. "He had my name there," she said. De la Rionda played the 911 call of a neighbor reporting the sounds of screaming and then a gunshot. Fulton blinked over and over and shifted slightly as the sound of the cries filled the courtroom. "Do you recognize that?" De la Rionda asked. "Yes," she replied, before saying firmly that it was the voice of her son. Under cross-examination, Fulton resisted suggestions from defense attorney Mark O'Mara that she hoped the screams were her son's, because if they were not, they would have come from Zimmerman. "I heard my son screaming," she told O'Mara. "And in your mind, as his mother, there was no doubt it was him screaming, correct?" O'Mara said as the questioning continued. "Absolutely," Fulton said. Jahvaris Martin took the stand after his mother and echoed her statement that the voice calling for help was that of his brother. But under cross-examination, Jahvaris Martin, 22, conceded that he had at one point told a reporter that he wasn't certain it was Martin's voice. "How do I explain?" he said, struggling to respond to O'Mara's cross-examination. "I guess I didn't want to believe it was him. ... I guess listening to it was clouded by shock and denial and sadness." The identifications were certainly emotional, but it was unclear how the six-woman jury would deal with the identifications. One witness has testified that he saw Martin on top of Zimmerman and heard screams from Zimmerman. In addition, Martin's father, Tracy Martin, initially told authorities that he did not believe the voice on the tape was his son's. After the family members testified, Dr. Shipping Bao, the medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Trayvon Martin, took the stand. Martin was alive for a time after he was shot, Bao said in his initial testimony. "His heart was still beating," Bao testified. "He was still alive, he was still in pain." The defense objected and Judge Deborah S. Nelson agreed. The prosecution is expected to rest later on Friday. ALSO: Man with guns, armor, Molotov cocktails arrested in Seattle Arizona wildfire: Investigators' answers will be in the details |
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