Huntington Beach : 3 Teen-agers Burned in Gunpowder Blast

Three Huntington Beach teen-agers suffered serious burns while playing with a can of gunpowder in a backyard playhouse on Pearce Street.

The black powder exploded in the boys’ faces after they set it afire Wednesday, apparently just to watch it burn, police spokeswoman JoAnne Bonkowski said.

Officials declined to release the boys’ names.

Most seriously injured was a 14-year-old, who suffered third-degree burns to his face and arms, Bonkowski said. The other two--both 13--suffered first- and second-degree burns to their faces and arms.

All three were taken to the burn unit at UCI Medical Center.

Officers from the Huntington Beach Police Department bomb squad and crime lab confiscated the remaining gunpowder, Bonkowski said. An older brother of one of the burned boys collects antique guns, she said, and his collection is believed to have been the source of the gunpowder.

“The kids got a hold of this powder, and it seems as though they had been playing around with it for several days,” Bonkowski said. The boys lit the gunpowder in a small metal can--similar to those in which tuna is packed.