Press Release  State Police, Fire Marshal Investigating Fatal Fireworks Incident

BROCKTON — Massachusetts State Police assigned to the Plymouth County District Attorney’s office and the State Fire Marshal’s Office are investigating the death of a 70 year-old man who was apparently killed by a firework, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz and Massachusetts State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine announced.

At approximately 9:19 p.m. last night, Wareham Police received a 9-1-1 call for a report of a person hit by a firework at 34 Beach Street. Wareham Police, Wareham Fire and EMS responded and located a male victim with an apparent facial injury from a firework. The man was pronounced deceased at the scene. He was identified as 70-year-old Robert Spagnuolo, of Wareham.

Wareham officials contacted State Police assigned to the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office, the State Police Bomb Squad, and the Massachusetts Fire Marshal’s Office. Once bomb technicians ensured that no further explosive hazards were present at the scene, a joint investigation commenced.

After examining the area and interviewing several witnesses, investigators determined that Spagnuolo was setting off fireworks at the beach when one exploded, causing traumatic injuries. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner accepted jurisdiction and will determine the cause and manner of his death, and the investigation is ongoing.

Fireworks are illegal in Massachusetts without licensing and certification because they are so dangerous. Overall, the law is highly effective: the Massachusetts fireworks injury rate is about one-fifth the national rate. Of the 220 fireworks-related visits to Massachusetts emergency departments from 2020 to 2024, 111 took place during June and July. These months also accounted for 366 of the 559 fires and explosions caused by fireworks during the same five-year period. Both injuries and fires held relatively steady last year and reflect a decline from the historically high numbers in 2020, when 75 ER visits and 187 fires or explosions were reported statewide.

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