Michigan fire authorities say a 19-year-old was fatally struck in the head late Monday by a canister projected into the air by a blast that occurred a quarter of a mile away in Clinton Township.
The incident happened after butane containers at a vaping distribution company caught on fire, Good Morning America (GMA) reported Tuesday.
“It was fire everywhere and once we got that close, we kept hearing more loud boom noises and more debris fly everywhere. It was really, really crazy. I’ve never seen it like that before,” one man told 6 ABC of the scene.
A 19-year-old — who was a quarter mile away from a fiery explosion in Michigan — was struck and killed by a canister that flew into the air from the blast, according to fire officials. https://t.co/KpSBDr90ga
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) March 5, 2024
Video footage shows the humongous fire and smoke billowing into the sky as firefighters worked the scene where several explosions were heard:
“The vape company had recently received a semi-load of butane containers, and over half of that was still at the facility as of Monday night, officials said. The company also had pallets of nitrous and lighter fluid, and over 100,000 vape pens with lithium batteries inside, officials said,” per the GMA report.
Fire authorities said debris that included blades flew into the air when the explosion occurred.
One firefighter was injured when a piece of debris broke through his windshield and clipped his face. However, the first responder was cleared to leave the hospital after receiving treatment.
Due to the flying debris, law enforcement urged residents to remain inside and away from the area to avoid being hurt. In addition, numerous residents and businesses were evacuated as a safety precaution while officials worked at the scene.
Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel expressed his condolences to the family of the person who died, stating, “Our thoughts and prayers and sadness to the family, friends and loved ones and the community of the loss of the life of the 19-year-old out in the street that got hit by one of those pieces of shrapnel.”
Aerial video footage shows the smoldering building following the explosion with debris scattered around its perimeter.
Officials have since interviewed a pair of business owners regarding the incident, and the GMA report noted the store passed inspection and was granted a certificate of occupancy in late 2022.
Meanwhile, Clinton Township building inspector Barry Miller said the building had a storage area in a back room, but when the inspection was performed there were no canisters kept there.
Miller added, “There are allowable quantities for certain things you can put in those rooms — they did not exceed any of those quantities. Obviously with what happened last night, they were well over what would have been allowable for that site.”
