Fireworks accident injures 2 girls following A's game

[Louis Cypher]

Susan Slusser, Chronicle Staff Writer Sunday, August 31, 2003


A strange year at the Coliseum got stranger on Saturday night when a fireworks stand slipped and shot fireworks into the second and third decks near right field during a pyrotechnics display after the A's game against Tampa Bay.

Two girls were injured, one about 8 and the other about 15, according to David Rinetti, director of stadium operations.

Rinetti said the younger girl was treated for a minor leg injury and left with her parents, and the other girl was taken to a local hospital with a burn inside her ear. Her condition was not immediately available.

Many other fans, including some on the field, were struck with embers and had holes burned into their clothes, according to a trio of 17-year-olds from San Leandro, who displayed their damaged shirts.

"A lot of people got hit, and there was a bunch of smoke," said Mahlon Duke.

"It was scary," said Mark Jochner of Walnut Creek. "When the fireworks (stand) fell over, I said, 'That's not right.' "

Rinetti said the fireworks were provided by PyroSpectaculars, a company in the San Bernardino County town of Rialto. It wasn't clear what caused the problem.

"There was some kind of difficulty with the mechanism, and it redirected and shot out and into the crowd," he said.

Earlier this season, former Texas outfielder Carl Everett was the target of a cell phone thrown by a fan in the right field stands, and the same week a fan was involved in a scuffle in the stands and then bit a police officer's finger down to the bone. In July, a young boy and his father were injured by an explosive thrown from a deck above them.