The remains of seven people reported missing after a massive explosion at a pyrotechnics warehouse in Northern California that sparked an 80-acre wildfire and forced evacuations have been recovered, according to Yolo County officials.
The exact cause of the July 1 blast at the warehouse in Esparto, a rural area about 40 miles northwest of Sacramento, is under investigation, Cal Fire said in a news release.
The explosion caused an enormous fire that led to other spot fires in farmlands and fields surrounding the area and caused the collapse of the warehouse itself.
The warehouse was operated by Devastating Pyrotechnics, a company with more than three decades worth of experience putting on fireworks shows.
“This type of incident is very rare, as facilities like this are required to not only follow our stringent California pyrotechnic requirements, but also federal explosive storage requirements,” Cal Fire officials said last week.
In a July 4 news release, Yolo County officials said the corner’s division was granted access to the warehouse in what was described as a “coordinated recovery” operation for the bodies of those reported missing. Authorities are in touch with the families of those reported missing, though they said no positive identifications have been made.
“Recovery efforts are expected to continue throughout the weekend as investigators, coroner personnel, and fire crews work carefully and respectfully through the process,” the release detailed.
While officials said the eventual identities of the deceased will not be released until family members have been notified, several media outlets, according to the Los Angeles Times, reported that at least several of the victims were likely warehouse employees.
“Our hearts and thoughts are with those we lost, their families, and everyone impacted in our community,” Devastating Pyrotechnics said in a statement last week. “Our focus will remain on those directly impacted by this tragedy, and we will cooperate fully with the proper authorities in their investigation.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
