July 05--A man in his 40s apparently lost both his hands Friday when a firework he was holding prematurely exploded, San Jose Police reported. And in Sunnyvale, a mortar-type firework blew off the fingers of two men, officials said.
Police did not identify any of the men, who were transported to local hospitals.
San Jose Police Officer Albert Morales said that police were summoned at 9:44 p.m. to the 1300 block of Leeward Drive, near Cassel Park and the intersection of Story Road and Capitol Expressway in East San Jose. A man igniting illegal fireworks, as family members stood nearby, was injured when the device exploded, Morales said. The blast blew off both the victim's hands, Morales said.
He is expected to survive.
The type of device was not identified. "It would have had to have been something pretty powerful," Morales said.
The Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety responded to a call about 9 p.m. Friday in the 700 block of East Duane Avenue, near the intersection of North Fair Oaks Avenue, Officer Randy Hinkle said.
Officers found two men who had been injured by an exploding firework. One apparently lost two fingers in each hand, and one lost two fingers on one hand, Hinkle said.
Contact Sharon Noguchi at 408-271-3775. Follow her at Twitter.com/noguchionk12.
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