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Up In Arms Over Fireworks Disposal
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As many as seven homes were damaged and two people were injured after a fireworks company in Andrew County tried to dispose of between 6-thousand and 9-thousand pounds of soggy fireworks by burning them.
Federal, state and local officials all say Schneitters Fireworks did nothing illegal, and tried to do the right thing be notifying the railroad, the fire department and the sheriff's office in advance of the effort. Neighbors say the were not warned, and some reported damage to their homes.
Deputy Chief Bill Zieres of the Missouri Fire Marshal's Office says Schneitters piled the wet fireworks in a trench, doused them with fuel, and lit them with an electronic match. A huge fireball and explosion resulted that shattered windows as far as a mile away.
Dozens of firefighters repsonded to the scene near the town of Nodaway to help put out small fires and retrieve fireworks scattered some 400 yards in every direction. One firefighter suffered some minor heat exhaustion during the effort. Officials with Burnlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad say an employee suffered a minor ear injury and some hearing loss, but is already back on the job.
Federal officials from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives responded and laid out a grid search in an effort to ensure they found all the fireworks. ATF told neighbors the fireworks company did nothing illegal but urged them to get a lawyer.
Officials say they brought in a disposal firm from Grand Island, Nebraska to supervise the cleanup and search for the last of the un-detonated fireworks.
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