At least 4 hurt in campfire blast in Van Buren Co.

Mon, Jul 14, 2008    to del.icio.us

BLOOMINGDALE TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — At least four people were hurt when an explosion occurred during a campfire near Mill Lake in Van Buren County, according to police and one of the injured.

The blast happened late Friday night in Bloomingdale Township when a group of people was sitting around a campfire, Michigan State Police said in a statement. The blast caused a fireball and tossed burning debris.

Clay Mandigo, 14, said the group had been sitting around the fire for more than an hour when they heard the blast. Clay said he was about 40 feet away, and was hit by flying wood.

"I opened my eyes and I couldn't see," he said. "I could hear a bunch of people screaming."

Two adults and about a dozen children were in the area at the time of the blast. The cause was under investigation.

Police said Sunday one person lost an eye, at least two were burned and one sustained broken bones. Police say others may have been hurt, but they weren't sure because they weren't notified when dispatchers sent ambulances.

Clay said he spent several hours in a hospital for treatment of burns before being released. And Clay said his identical twin brother, Colin, was hit by a log on the chest and suffered two broken ribs and burns.

Their mother Linda Mandigo said she felt the explosion in her house, about 250 feet away.

"There were a lot of screaming kids," Mandigo said. "It was so scary."

Bloomingdale Township is located about 16 miles northwest of Kalamazoo.