Santa Ana Lunar New Year Fireworks Accident Injures A Dozen People, 2 Seriously

SANTA ANA (CBSLA) — A fireworks accident at a Lunar New Year celebration injured a dozen people in Santa Ana Friday night.

Some of those fireworks launched into the crowd at a planned celebration near Westminster Avenue and Euclid Boulevard.

Eight people were hurt enough to go the hospital, two of them have traumatic injuries.

Fire crews says the large crowd made it difficult to get to the victims and underscored the need to be careful when handling fireworks.

"The fireworks that were being used here were the professional style, these were not the ones you that you would buy at your local store. They're explosives, so obviously they need to be handled with care. Not sure what the circumstances were here, but some were discharged into the crowd, causing some injuries," said Captain Jeff Sutherlin of the  Orange County Fire Authority.

Police believe it was an accident and say they are not investigating the incident since nothing criminal occurred.

Officials also said organizers may not have realized a number of people were hit because the event continued even as people were hurt. It's not clear who was setting off the fireworks, but OCFA says they were made aware of the event.