Picture this: you’re sitting down for dinner when suddenly the ground shakes and your windows rattle from an explosion miles away. That’s exactly what happened to residents in Esparto, California, when a commercial fireworks facility erupted in a massive blast that’s left seven people missing and an entire community on edge.
The blast was so intense that people miles away felt their homes shake. Windows rattled in their frames, and residents rushed outside to see what had happened.
When firefighters had to retreat
The explosion hit just before 6 p.m. Tuesday at a facility storing commercial fireworks in Yolo County. And here’s the scary part — firefighters actually went into the building initially, but had to pull back because it was just too dangerous. Fire Chief Curtis Lawrence didn’t mince words about the severity of what they were dealing with.
Lawrence said he’d never seen anything like this before. That’s coming from someone who’s probably seen his share of emergencies. When a fire chief says something like that, you know it’s serious.
The decision to pull firefighters out wasn’t made lightly. These are people who run toward danger when everyone else is running away. But when they encountered the scale of destruction and ongoing risks inside that building, safety protocols kicked in.
Why drones are doing the searching now
Instead of sending people back into that dangerous mess, crews are using drones to survey the debris field from above. Smart move, honestly. The explosion created such a massive area of destruction that officials still don’t know when it’ll be safe enough for firefighters to return.
These aren’t your typical hobby drones either. Emergency response teams use specialized equipment that can navigate through smoke and detect heat signatures without putting anyone else at risk.
More than 30 fire trucks initially responded to the scene — that’s basically every available unit in the area. As of Wednesday afternoon, only a few remained, but evacuation orders are still in place for nearby neighborhoods.
Your lights might still be out
If you’re one of the more than 150 customers without power in the area, you’re probably wondering when things will get back to normal. The fire chief’s priority right now is working with his team to shrink the exclusion zone so people can get back to their homes and restore power where it’s safe to do so.
The power outages aren’t just inconvenient — they’re affecting everything from medical equipment to businesses trying to stay open. Local schools had to close, and some residents with medical conditions requiring electricity have been staying with family or friends.
Lawrence made sure to shout out his mostly volunteer crew who stepped up during this crisis. The agency is primarily made up of volunteers in this small community, which means everyday people in Esparto literally dropped what they were doing to help their neighbors.
The investigation is just getting started
Here’s what we know so far: the building was owned by someone with an active pyrotechnic license, but officials haven’t released their identity yet. The Office of the State Fire Marshal is leading the investigation and has sent an arson and bomb team to the scene.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s office is also involved, which tells you this incident is getting serious attention from the state level. When explosions involve commercial fireworks, there are a lot of federal regulations and safety protocols that come into play.
What happens next
The reality is that seven people are still unaccounted for, and until crews can safely search the debris field, families are left waiting for answers. Officials haven’t confirmed whether the missing people were employees at the facility, but that’s likely what investigators are trying to determine.
The good news? No firefighters were injured in the explosion, which could have easily been much worse given how dangerous the situation became. The fact that first responders had to retreat shows just how unpredictable and intense this incident was.
For now, residents in the evacuation zones will have to wait it out while experts figure out when it’s safe to return. This small community is pulling together during an incredibly difficult time, relying on volunteers and mutual aid from neighboring areas to get through this crisis.
