Most of Ware park closed indefinitely after fireworks scare

WARE, Mass. (WWLP) - Most of Ware’s Grenville Park has been closed indefinitely as a search for undetonated fireworks continues there.

Fire Chief Thomas Coulombe told 22News that a town employee on a ride-on lawnmower was mowing in the park on Friday, when a firework shell exploded under him, causing the park to be closed temporarily. The same thing happened to another employee on Monday, however. He received minor injuries, and Coulombe said he was at the doctor’s office Tuesday morning, complaining of ringing in his ears.

Since these discoveries, state police bomb experts have been scouring the park looking for unexploded fireworks, and the state fire marshal is also involved. About a dozen such shells have been found in the park.

Coulombe says that they believe the fireworks are leftover from the town’s Fourth of July fireworks display, but that this is highly unusual because they have never had fireworks left over before.

The park workers were not the only ones to encounter fireworks in the park. Deputy Ware Fire Chief Dan Donitis told 22News that he accidentally stepped on an unexploded shell that was hidden under leaves in the park. Fortunately, it did not go off.

"I thought it was a rock at first. And I kicked the leaves back and it happened to be a shell," Donitis said.

Part of the park has been deemed safe by officials, and is currently open to a soccer camp which gathers there. The rest of the park will remain closed until the bomb squad can verify that there are no fireworks in the area.