Update @ 10:43 p.m.: Cal Fire Battalion Chief Steve Beach confirmed tonight that an explosion at The Diamond in Lake Elsinore occurred at the fireworks display site, and that an active investigation was underway.
Noting the “routine” Friday night fireworks event after the Lake Elsinore Storm games, Beach said that two fireworks company employees and a Riverside County Fire Department inspector were on the site preparing for the evening’s show when the explosion occurred.
“We don’t know what the cause was,” he said, describing the event as “catastrophic.”
The first employee received second and third degree burns over 80-90 percent of his body and was air-lifted to a burn center. A second employee sustained second degree burns over nine percent of his body and was transported to a local hospital.
The inspector experienced minor burns on his arm.
Beach said that a thorough and systematic detonation of the remaining fire explosives would be necessary over the next few hours.
Update @ 7 p.m.: According to a post on the Lake Elsinore Storm’s Facebook page, tonight’s game is going on as scheduled, however, there will be no fireworks.
According to Riverside County Fire Department officials, a vehicle that caught fire may have been the result of an incident involving fireworks.
Gallery courtesy of Daniel Lane:
The explosion was heard miles away, according to witnesses at the scene.
Three people were injured in the blaze that consumed about a half acre of vegetation before being extinguished.
One civilian was transported by Mercy Air with major burns, while a civilian and fire department employee were treated for minor burns at a local hospital, according to fire officials.
Original: Cal Fire and Riverside County Firefighters are on the scene of a blaze at Diamond Stadium, located at 500 Diamond Drive in Lake Elsinore, it was reported.
(Credit: Daniel Lane/SWRNN)
According to a Riverside County Fire Department report, at least one person has been transported by Mercy Air ambulance with critical burn injuries.
Two more patients sustained minor burn injuries and are being transported by ground ambulance to area hospitals, officials said.
The blaze was reported at 4:57 p.m. and was contained at 5:08 p.m. to about a half acre, officials said.
At least one vehicle was damaged in the fire.
The cause of the fire is not known at this time, however, unconfirmed reports at the scene suggest it may have been related to fireworks that had been planned for this evening’s game.
*Daniel Lane contributed to this report.
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