Parents of a Texas teen are warning others after their son suffered extremely serious injuries from a homemade fireworks bomb.
Rowdy Radford, 15, is currently in intensive care at the Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. His left leg is amputated below the knee, his chest and face are severely burned, and his eyes are heavily bandaged due to metal chards that propelled into them during the explosion.
It is currently unknown whether Radford can still see; doctors will need Radford to wake up to confirm it.
On Saturday July 3, Radford prepared a sparkler bomb, which featured 180 sparklers wrapped with electrical tape. The idea behind the explosive devices is that the tight wrapping of the sparklers causes compression, which results in an explosion as all the sparklers go off.
Radford’s mother said in an interview with KHOU that setting off an explosive was an annual event for the boy.
“They do it every year,” said his mom, Wendy Smith. “But we didn’t know this was going to be a big one.”
Along with Radford, another boy, also suffered injuries, albeit less serious.
This time, the sparkler’s went off the just as Radford was about to light them, not giving the boys a chance even to run.
Family says the explosion blew a four-feet hole in the ground and could be heard four miles away.
Family friends have set up a fund page for Radford, where it explains he would be a high school freshman come fall and had wanted to be a mechanic when he grew up.
An update on Rowdy’s condition posted on the page says that the teen will need more surgery to determine whether the rest of the leg, which has been partially amputated, can be retained. Radford will also receive surgery on his right leg and arms.
Radford’s fingers, which were blown off during the explosion as well, have been reattached, but may not work.
