Forensic Sights Into Cracker Blast Injuries During Festive Settings: A Case Series

Firecracker-related injuries during festival celebrations like Diwali are of important public health concern. These injuries vary from minor wounds to severe amputations and vision loss, often hurting young individuals. Here, in these case series we discuss about three such blast injury cases emphasizing the urgent need for preventive measures, prompt trauma care, and attention to medicolegal aspects.

Case-1: A 13-year-old boy suffered from traumatic amputation of his right hand at the level of carpal bones along with minor abrasions on the neck, left thigh, and face with hemodynamic stability after a firecracker blast on November 1, 2024.

Case-2: A 19-year-old male sustained superficial burns on his face, hands, and left foot along with third-degree corneal chemical burn in his left eye, leading to vision loss while mixing firecracker powder at home. Despite normal vital signs, he was needed immediate medical and ophthalmologic care for his injuries.

Case-3: 64-year-old male during an attempt to assemble a gas cylinder in his home sustained severe and complex injuries resulting from a devastating gas cylinder blast incident by a gas leak ignited by nearby fire crackers as a part of Diwali celebrations. The ignition caused a powerful explosion, leading to extensive trauma to multiple regions on the patient’s body. After the explosion the patient became unconscious and was immediately transported to the hospital. Upon admission, he was in hypovolemic shock with unrecordable blood pressure needing aggressive fluid resuscitation to stabilize his condition.

These cases emphasise the hazards of improper firecracker use. The first case shows the severe impact of high-energy blasts resulting in limb amputation. In complement, the second case shows the outcomes of performing experiments with explosive materials, leading to significant ocular injury. The third case highlights about the correlation of multiple factors—a gas leak, festive firecracker ignition, and severe blast injuries—occurring all together. All cases call attention to the importance of safety precautions, public awareness, and the requirement for swift medical intervention. They also highlight medicolegal issues, like adhering with safety regulations and addressing negligence.

Firecracker injuries can be prevented on a largescale with the help of adequate public education, stricter safety laws, and responsible supervision by adults especially during the festival seasons. From a forensic stand, detailed description of the injuries like traumatic amputation and chemical burns, are necessary for forensic analysis of the remnants of firecrackers or explosive materials.