A gardener lost most of his hand, several fingers and part of his vision after he picked up an unlit firework thinking it was a piece of garbage.
Hector Mayoral, from Torrance, a city in the US State of California, suffered serious injuries while working on several yards in one city neighbourhood on 8th July.
The 37-year-old worker was apparently cleaning up near a lawn when he came across what he believed to be another piece of trash but was actually an undetonated firework.
The painful moment was captured on a local resident’s doorbell camera, showing Hector as he was about to throw the explosive in his truck.
But as soon as he opened the vehicle’s door and was about to place it inside, it exploded in a massive blast that instantly sent a cloud of smoke up in the air.
The nasty explosion reportedly left Hector with numerous injuries, including a wounded left hand, three fallen-off teeth and a loss of sight in his right eye.
On his right hand, doctors reportedly had to sew three of his fingers together, presumably to stop them from bleeding or getting infected.
Hector told local media everything happened really quickly. When he reached for the firework, all he saw was a ball.
He never expected it to explode, but it did right in his face and pushed him back.
However, Hector also said he was glad it was him that got hurt and not some of the many children living nearby who could have just as easily found it and gotten even more injured.
His family have set up a GoFundMe campaign for USD 150,000 (GBP 114,540) to help with his medical expenses since he is unable to work.
In the fundraiser, his family wrote: “Hector needs all the support he can get right now. While medical expenses are the least of Hector’s worries because he is grateful to be alive, he can still use the help of donations from his family and friends to help pay his expenses since he can no longer work due to this horrendous incident.
“Hector thanks you greatly for your time, and support in his recovery.
“We, the family, also thank you for your help.
“Times right now for Hector are tough, but if we can show Hector some love, we can help take some stress off his shoulders. “
So far, they have raised a little over USD 100,000 (GBP 76,360).
