U.S. Fireworks Toll Stands at 3 Dead, at Least 52 Hurt

The bodies of two men missing since a deadly fireworks explosion aboard an Illinois barge were found Saturday in the Mississippi River. One other man also was killed in that blast during a holiday weekend that was marred by fireworks accidents.

In Babylon, N.Y., two 21-year-old men were critically injured Saturday, when a rocket they thought was a dud blew up in their faces. Raymond Irizariy and Michael Fragnola suffered third-degree burns.

More than 50 people were injured in other fireworks accidents across the country.

The bodies in the Mississippi, found near the barge where a fireworks show blew up Thursday at Alton, Ill., were identified as Ralph Duty, 44, and Raymond Hernandez, 24, both of Chicago.

The two technicians apparently drowned after the explosion threw them into the water, Madison County Deputy Coroner Robert Lewis said.

Another technician, Rick Cisneros, 45, died on the barge.

Authorities said the explosion occurred when an 8-inch shell fired from the barge exploded just a few feet in the air, what’s known as a “low blow.”

Another “low blow” set off an explosion aboard a fireworks barge Friday at Falmouth, Mass. One person was hurt.

In Bessemer, Mich., 21 people were burned when a “fireball” flew into a crowd of spectators during Friday’s city display, a sheriff’s spokesman said. All victims were released by Saturday.

An unexpected wind gust blew falling debris from a fireworks show onto the crowd at Green Bay, Wis., sending 15 people to hospitals with minor burns.

One man was hospitalized and 11 other people were treated for minor burns after a fireworks accident at Portsmouth, N.H. A mortar tube burst, and the shell it was firing showered spectators with hot fragments, police said.

On Long Island, N.Y., a 28-year-old man lost an eye when a rocket ignited Friday night in a homemade launcher in his backyard. Another man was severely injured when a homemade launcher set off fireworks in his face.