RIVER ROUGE, Mich. – Twin 11-year-old girls were injured Thursday after they brought a powerful firework into a bathroom in their River Rouge home and lit it.
One girl lost several fingers and another was cut and burned Thursday, June 27 after lighting the firework, which police compared to a stick of dynamite. The children found the firework inside their home, and believed it was just going to sparkle.
They lit the firework and it exploded on them. Neighbors said it sounded like an actual explosion. Police said they believe the firework was more powerful than an m-80 based on the structural damage it caused in the home.
Following the explosion, neighbor Ernestine Dickerson said she heard the girls’ dog barking, and then saw the girls running her way. One of the twins looked like she was missing her hand, Dickerson told Local 4.
Dickerson called her daughter Nikki and her granddaughter Kye to help. Nikki, a nurse, tied a tourniquet on the child who lost several fingers. Dickerson held onto the other.
It was this family’s quick action that really helped those girls. Authorities told us the tourniquet was vital.
River Rouge police responded to the incident and quickly got the girls to the hospital. The River Rogue police deputy chief told Local 4 that the firework was illegal.
The twin’s mother was at work when the incident happened.
Police said they plan to track down who sold the illegal fireworks. For now, they credit Dickerson, her daughter, and granddaughter with making a difference.
The girls love Dickerson and refer to her as “Nana.”
Watch Mara MacDonald’s full report below.
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