NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A Long Island man severed his fingers while trying to light a firework on the Fourth of July, Suffolk County police said.
The incident happened around 9 p.m. when Ryan McCloskey, 21, was trying to light a firework at an Independence Day party outside a residence in Copiague.
The firework exploded in his hand, severing three fingers on his left hand and damaging the other two. He also suffered a burn on one leg, police said.
Responding officers applied a tourniquet to stop the bleeding before McCloskey was taken to Good Samaritan University Hospital in West Islip for treatment of serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
In another fireworks incident on Thursday, a Long Island man was arrested after allegedly allowing a child to ignite fireworks that set two houses on fire.