3 Injured In Untimely Waukesha Fireworks Display Explosion

WAUKESHA, WI — Three people suffered only minor injuries after a Fourth of July fireworks accident in Waukesha resulted in a shell detonating on the ground.

Waukesha's annual fireworks display was held at the Waukesha County Fairgrounds just after 9 p.m. on Thursday, July 4. Midway through the show, before the finale, fire officials said a shell unintentionally detonated on the ground in its launching vessel. The explosion caused several other surrounding shells to detonate.

Steve Spielbauer of the Green Bay-based Spielbauer Fireworks Company said a five-inch shell that ordinarily would have been launched 450 feet into the air before exploding suffered a malfunction, causing sparks to fly just above ground level. To a spectator at Thursday night's show, the shell would have resulted in a "middle-sized" firework in the sky.

"Everybody's okay," he told Patch. "The people who were injured had a couple bruises. No cuts, no lacerations, nothing like that. We work as safely as possible, which is why nobody got seriously hurt."

A total of three people, who were employees of Spielbauer Fireworks, contracted by the City of Waukesha for the fireworks show, suffered minor injuries. The fireworks show did eventually resume, after about a 15-minute delay in the show and the show concluded without any other incidents. No spectators or city staff were injured due to the unintended shell detonation.

According to Waukesha fire officials, firefighters were standing by at the City of Waukesha Fireworks display Thursday night at the Waukesha County fairgrounds to provide emergency treatment for injuries.

Spielbauer told Patch his company had a "good Fourth of July," and that it was the only fireworks accident they encountered this holiday season.