A toppled “cake bomb” made up of massed aerial fireworks launched into a huge cache of illegal explosives inside an Aliamanu carport on New Year’s Eve, inflicting a horrific toll. Three women were killed: two died of fatal injuries at the scene; another succumbed to her injuries at a hospital. The explosions, shrapnel and fire severely wounded three children and 23 adults, and officials are fearing more deaths.
This tragic and disturbing disaster must, finally, be the bombshell incident that shakes Honolulu awake, and motivates residents of this island to end the use of these deadly, launched explosives.
There can be no more room for argument on this issue, because there is no other conclusion to be drawn from the shock and horror of this incident — of seeing one’s neighbors ripped to death, maimed or burned by a “fireworks bomb … that exploded,” as Gov. Josh Green lamented. This terrible hurt imposed on children and adults, this death and destruction, must be enough to convince Oahu residents that illegal aerials are in fact instruments of destruction, endangering all within their radius of fire.
Among the fireworks victims are two tots, ages 1 and 3, who were “severely injured” and potentially struggling for their lives, said Green, an emergency room doctor, at a New Year’s Day press conference. One onlooker said a severely burned infant’s “skin was all gone”; another said a person’s leg was blown off.
Officials described the scene as “gruesome.” Ambulances were forced to triage several houses away from the explosions because the street was clogged with cars — some splattered with brain matter, Green said. All 13 ambulances dispatched were needed to transport wounded people — some hurt so badly they couldn’t speak. Others were taken to hospital by car.
Also, just an hour earlier, fireworks blasted a 19-year-old man in Kalihi. He died at a hospital as victims of the Aliamanu “cake bomb” were being admitted.
“Enough is enough,” Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi said. It certainly is. Now comes determination to make the illegal mayhem stop.
The mayor pledged to push for stronger enforcement, tougher penalties and use of “new technologies” to stop the import of illegal fireworks is necessary. These must be accompanied by intensified coordination between police and prosecutors and the federal entities that have access to Honolulu’s ports, where explosives are pouring in by the hundreds of tons.
Current advances in forensics, including technology that pinpoints the origin of explosions, along with the pure ubiquity of projectile sites, make it flat-out unacceptable that so few prosecutions for possessing fireworks take place.
As a first step, Green has asked that all refrain from setting off more bombs. A forthcoming amnesty program by the state will provide an option to dispose of remaining illegal fireworks. The governor also, rightly, pledged to work with the Legislature to create “very, very severe” penalties for possession of illegal fireworks, calling for Class C felony punishment — a five-year prison term and a $10,000 fine — for possession of more than 50 pounds of the explosives.
Intense government intervention is indeed called for. In addition, however, locals and public officials alike must band together to make a change. That must include an end to the idea that illegal aerial fireworks are harmless fun — so that “friendly neighbors” will no longer buy the explosives, and “good neighbors” will consistently call 911 to report addresses where bombs are being set off, and testify in court when called upon.
The change must also include creative action by Honolulu officials to channel the obviously deep desire of local residents to enjoy fireworks on holidays. A reversal of the city’s ban on “safe and sane” sparklers and ground-based fountains could be considered, and the city should also consider supporting additional safe and sanctioned neighborhood-based fireworks celebrations.
Oahu’s residents must work together, beginning today, so that illegal fireworks will never again maim or kill a child or adult, burn down a house or start a wildfire on this island.
