A teenager lost his hand in a fireworks accident at a Fourth of July party.
“It was one of those horror stories that I was always told about, ‘Stay away from the fireworks. You’ll blow your hand off,’” Ryli Baumgartner said.
Baumgartner said he was at a Fourth of July party where fireworks were being set off.
He said someone there was intoxicated and threw a sparkler bomb.
“As soon as I saw them light it and toss it a few feet in front of them, I was instantly scared and thought, ‘As soon as this thing goes off, they’re blind or dead,’” he said.
Baumgartner said two young children ran toward it, so he jumped into action and grabbed the lit firework.
“I went to throw it and as soon as I got to here, boom, and I looked down and there was nothing there,” he said.
Medics rushed him to Harborview Medical Center.
Surgeons had to amputate his damaged right hand and he also suffered burns on his body.
“I just put myself in front of it because I’d rather it be me than anyone else,” Baumgartner said.
After five days, he is now out of the hospital and just beginning his recovery.
“I have to learn to stretch my arm out fully because if I don’t, I could lose full mobility of my arm,” he said.
Baumgartner said he starting to realize that his life is changed forever.
“It’s going to take a while for my brain to realize there is no hand there,” he said.
Doctors said he cannot work for two months.
“I called my job and I can’t give CPR without a hand. I can’t swim good without a hand,” Baumgartner said.
The accident is taking a physical and emotional toll.
“I want to be able to take care of myself. I want to be able to stand up and not hurt. I want to be able to tie my pants and tie my shoes,” he said.
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