Boy's fingers blown off by illegally sold firework in the park
| Posted: November 03, 2011
INJURED: George Kemble-Brown, 15, sits in his bed at Broomfield Hospital after surgery Photo: Mike Rose
A TEENAGE boy's hand was blown to pieces by a firework on Hallowe'en night.
George Kemble-Brown, 15, of Great Baddow, bought the industrial firework – used by farmers to scare birds – illegally from a man in the street with his lunch money.
At around 8pm on Monday, George was messing about with friends at Great Baddow Recreation Ground.
But when he lit the fuse, the firework instantly exploded, deafening George and blasting his fingers off.
The Great Baddow High School student told the Chronicle: "All I remember is I just looked down and it had blown the tips of my fingers off.
"My middle finger was just a bone, and I had a massive cut down my palm.
"My index and my forefinger have both had the tops blown off and my hand is fractured.
"I had a couple of these bangers with my friends and we were just messing around."
George's friend ran to alert patrolling police offers.
As he waited for the ambulance to arrive, brave George said to one of his friends, "that's my Nintendo days over".
But the youngster has a stark message for his peers as Bonfire Night approaches not to play with fireworks. "Do not go near them," he said. "I'm not ever going to again."
"I am pretty sure everyone that saw the accident is not going near them again."
Mother Joanne Kemble-Wright said: "These are not normal fireworks – they are three times as loud – and it does not help that people are selling these in the street.
"You surely have to have a licence to sell things like that.
"It just drives me mad."
George underwent surgery at Broomfield Hospital on Tuesday.
Sergeant Janet Bloomfield, who was in charge of Hallowe'en night policing, said: "This was a very tragic incident to happen over Hallowe'en, despite crime figures being much lower than last year.
"We want to send a clear message about the risks involved, and we really do not want somebody else to suffer in the same way.
"There were a lot of youngsters setting off fireworks irresponsibly.
"Imagine if the young boy had thrown that firework, the consequences of that on someone else.
"It could have blown off their face.
"This cannot and must not happen again, especially with Bonfire Night approaching.
"We did not have any serious incidents of crime this year, though there was still some antisocial behaviour.
"One child was issued an £80 penalty fine for antisocial behaviour in front of his parents."
Comments
Brainybird - You should read a letter in todays (10/11/2011) Chronicle. Some sections from the letter... What failed to be addressed was that I counted 18 youths together throwing fireworks at the elderly people's bungalows and home that back on to Rothmans Place. One little boy, James, was in tears terrified that his house would catch fire. They were putting fireworks in dog wast bins, throwing them at people in Baddow rec. at mums passing with little ones and into Rothmans Avenue at cars. The full letter is much longer. The letter writer did not have any sympathy for the youth - can you blame them?
*checks sympathy tank: Empty* Only goes to show that Darwin was full of ****!
Yes, lets punish the usual law abiding and sensible majority and ban everything just to stop the number of small accidents and also upsetting a few neurotics.
'bought it off a bloke in the street' is a bit of an old chesnut isn't it?
Bhudeeka, I can't believe you have said that you have no sympathy. George was doing what most teenagers do and having a bit of fun. I am sure if you had know the consequences he would not have touched the firework. He has learnt his lesson in a very hard way. It is about time the law was changed to stop fireworks being made available to the public and just sold to organised displays. Unfortunately there are likely to be more stories like this after this weekend.
Bhudeeka, how can you say you have no sympathy, George is just a normal teenager looking for a bit of fun. It is the manufacturers of these things that are in the wrong, along with the law. No explosives should be sold to the public, just to organised displays. I am sure George has learnt his lesson the hard way, I wish him a full recovery.
This is a perfect example of why fireworks should not be sold to the general public, if fireworks were restricted to organized displays we wouldn't have to read about pointless accidents like this. If the general public couldn't get hold of fireworks they would have to go to proper displays to watch them and the charities that benefit would receive a lot more money. I live near this park and it was probably these very fireworks that made me jump out of my skin on Monday evening and had my dog quaking in terror under the bed. The fact that every other pub carpark seems to have a container in it selling the things is beyond me. Fireworks are deadly explosives, if they must continue to be sold to the general public it should be as strictly controlled as any other explosives not left to any old wide boy who fancies a bit of extra cash with no strings attached.
i havea no sympathy these things should be banned from public sale and use and only organisations hsould be allowed to sell and use them the albert pub in witham is now selling them in their grounds there are no warning signs or anything they coudl blow up any time and i am scarred to pass them to get to traffic lights is that legal?