On Friday July 5th, two boys, Edther Ocampo, 10-years-old, and Dominic Ocampo, 11-years-old, were walking home in San Juan Capistrano from soccer practice when they found an unused firework from what they thought however, it turned out to be a homemade bomb.
Out of curiosity, the boys picked up the explosive and brought it home with them. They later lit the firework, but it blew up while Edther was still holding on to it. He didn’t have enough time to put it down and unfortunately it exploded in his hand causing him to lose three fingers from the explosion. He also suffered internal abdominal bleeding and a massive gash above his left eye.
Dominic was also hit by the blast and he suffered multiple abrasions and second degree burns to the right of his body.
A neighbor heard the explosion and their screams and ran outside to find them both lying on the ground and called 911.
The boys were rushed to the UCI hospital in Orange, where Edther’s mom was informed that Edther’s hand had suffered extensive nerve damage and the surgeions were trying to save his remaining two fingers in addition to the rest of his hand. Unfortunately his hand was not salvageable.
So far Edther has undergone multiple surgeries and will need more, however he will have a prolonged recovery process.
Their mom is not able to work while she is with them in the hospital. She will need lots of help to pay for Edther’s medical bills, therapy and for rehabilitation.
The boy’s aunt has created a GoFundMe page to help her sister and her nephews. They also kindly ask for continued prayers and thoughts during these difficult times. The aunt states that no amount is too small as it truly appreciated. She thanks everyone for their support as it truly means a lot.
Fireworks were out of control this year. This should never have happened if we had proper enforcement. Lawlessness is taking over– it was like a war zone of sustained explosions for hours. Absolutely out of control.
Yes, absolutely out of control!