Two days after a fire that evolved into an explosion destroyed a fireworks business in Northern California, rescue workers started looking for seven people who were still unaccounted for on Thursday.
Since Tuesday night’s warehouse explosion in a predominantly rural area some 30 miles northwest of Sacramento, families of the missing have been on edge. Although local authorities have not made a decision, the pyrotechnics firm Devastating Pyrotechnics said in a statement that several people had died.
Because the site near Esparto, California, was considered dangerous through Wednesday night, with fires burning and explosions continuing, search teams, including a team from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, have only recently started to enter, officials said. The cause is still being looked into.
Large pyrotechnics used in aerial displays throughout Northern California, including for Friday’s Fourth of July fireworks, were in the warehouse. Following the tragedy, fireworks displays were canceled in a number of places.
According to Chief Curtis Lawrence of the Esparto Fire Protection District, as of Thursday afternoon, some spot fires had been put out and the area was somewhat safer for firefighters to begin working on. However, authorities stated that it was still too early to ascertain the fate of the seven individuals who went missing. Whether all seven were employed at the site has not been disclosed by officials.
At a news conference on Thursday, Yolo County undersheriff Matthew Davis addressed the relatives of the victims, saying, “We’re doing everything we can to bring you the answers and the closure that you’re looking for.” We recognize that this is a very trying period.
The content of the article is not being retrieved.
Please make sure that JavaScript is enabled in your browser.
We appreciate your patience as we check access. Please log out of Reader mode and sign in to your Times account, or subscribe to The Times in its entirety.
We appreciate your patience as we check access.
Are you a subscriber already?Sign in.
Do you want to read every Times article?Sign up.
