July 4, 2008
Visitors to a fourth of July fireworks display in Charles City, Iowa, got a lot more than they bargained for when one of the pyrotechnic shells misfired. It sent a fireball skidding down the street and into a crowd of spectators.

At least 37 people were injured in the accident, including several
children. “It was like a bunch of little fireworks just coming toward us,” said Emily Watson, who was at the display. “They started to explode. It was just like skating right across the street and then I saw them exploding right in the street here. …In a split second, it started coming at me.” Another spectator, Brenda Schweiger, saw her life flash before her eyes. “My exact thought was, ‘This is it, we’re going to die,’ she said.

Thankfully, no one was killed and Charles City Fire Department spokesman Eric Whipple stated that most of the injuries were minor. Officials weren’t quite sure why the fireworks malfunctioned, but said it appears that there was a misfire involving 13 racks of firework tubes. It happened during the finale of the display. “It appears (some of the fireworks) went horizontally across the ground,” said Assistant fire Chief Dave Boehmer. As that happened, it sent a large fireball towards the
crowd, and people gathered on lawn chairs and sprawled across blankets were sent running for their lives. Now that’s an Independence Day the way our ancestors experienced it: dodging live ammunition.