‘It Disintegrated’: Firework Explodes Causing Teen To Lose Entire Hand

Interesting accident, california, explosion, fireworks, injuries admin July 7, 2026 0 Comments

‘It Disintegrated’: Firework Explodes Causing Teen To Lose Entire Hand

A California teenager lost his right hand June 3 after he lit a tennis ball-sized firework, and it exploded.

Nader Hanna, 18, was with his twin brother and their friends in the parking lot of the In-N-Out Burger restaurant in Pleasanton a few days after his high school graduation when a classmate handed him a firework, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Hanna took the firework and lit it before he said the firework exploded, and his hand “disintegrated.”

“It just exploded in my hand the second I lit it,” Hanna told the outlet. “My hand took the whole blow. I looked down and I didn’t see a hand. It disintegrated.”

Hanna described the firework as large, wrapped in foil, and resembling a Christmas ornament, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The teen believes the firework was faulty. Following the explosion, Hanna looked at his hand and noticed blood, prompting him to run to his twin brother, Ramsey, and their friends.

Ramsey, who was not near his brother when the incident occurred, called 911 and looked for pieces of his brother’s hand in the street.

“I just saw a bunch of pieces; it just looked like pieces of skin,” Ramsey said. (RELATED: Airport Security Foils Traveler’s Alleged Nutty Live Grenade Scheme)

Kevin Mokashi, a friend of Nader’s, offered a similar sentiment.

“His hand just looked like it was put in a blender; it was just flesh,” Mokashi said. “There was no hand; it was just spewing blood everywhere. We were all freaking out,” he added.

Nader was transported by ambulance to a local hospital, where he realized his hand could not be saved. Doctors managed to preserve his wrist, and now the teen has adjusted to using his left hand.

Despite losing his entire right hand, Nader has maintained a positive outlook.

“Can you imagine if it was [sic] my face? My life would be ruined,” he told the outlet.

Nader is not the only person to be injured by fireworks.

An Oklahoma mom recently lost two fingers after she confiscated a malfunctioning firework from her 7-year-old daughter, according to WECT.

In addition, a 12-year-old from Oklahoma sustained significant injuries to his hand and eye after a mortar-style firework exploded, FOX 10 reported. An 11-year-old child was also injured as a result of the incident.

Around 2,000 children are treated for firework-related injuries a year in the U.S., according to Johns Hopkins Medicine. Burns are the most common injury; however, amputations also result from fireworks that go off unexpectedly.

About 13,000 people were injured by fireworks in 2025, with 35% of injuries affecting the hands and fingers, according to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission’s website.