Gender reveal party explosions set off reports of an earthquake
It's a boy
The birth of a child is a happy occasion for many, but imagine your happiness causing a tremor so big that it puts cracks in another person’s house’s foundation. Adding to the list of over the top gender reveal parties, a couple in New Hampshire, set off 80 pounds of explosives.
On Tuesday evening, responding to reports of a loud explosion, Police in Kingston, landed upon people who acknowledged holding a gender reveal party with explosives.
This party was held in Torromeo quarry, New Hampshire. According to police, the source of the loud explosion, was a blast resulting from 80 pounds (36 kilograms) of Tannerite. This explosive is typically sold over the counter as a target for firearms practice. The family thought the quarry would be the safest spot to light the explosive.
Nearby residents said the blast rocked their homes and some reported property damage, NBC 10 Boston reported.
According toSara Taglieri, who lives in a home that abuts the quarry,“We heard this God-awful blast.”
“It knocked pictures off our walls … I’m all up for silliness and whatnot, but that was extreme.”
Taglieri’s husband, Matt, told the TV station that neighbours reported cracks in the foundation of their homes from the explosion.
No injuries were reported, police said. The person who bought and detonated the explosives has turned himself into police. He was not identified. Police said an investigation is ongoing and they will soon decide on charges.
This was but one more example of so many gender reveal parties turned hazardous. In 2020, a "smoke-generating pyrotechnic device" at a similar event in a Yucaipa park, sparked the El Dorado fire, which spread over 7,000 acres.
Back in 2019, in rural Knoxville, Iowa, a "gender reveal" party which involved a homemade explosive device went horribly wrong, shooting metal shrapnel and killing Pamela Kreimeyer, a 56-year-old woman.
An Arizona border patrol agent, accidentally started a wildfire when he shot a “high-velocity firearm” at a target that was supposed to only release a blue or pink powder. However, the hit caused anexplosion that sparked the 2017 Sawmill Fire(as it came to be known), which damaged more than 45,000 acres and cost more than $8 million in damages.
This desire of people to make their child’s gender reveal bigger, more over-the-top and more memorable than others has led to some truly tragic outcomes. It is high time that these couples re-evaluate their choices and decide whether they want the birth of their child to be a joyous occasion or a tragedy.
(With inputs from agencies)