Man Dies After Placing Firework Atop His Head

It doesn't get much more American than blowing one's self up on the Fourth of July with fireworks.

Source: The Post And Courier

SUMMERVILLE — Wearing an Uncle Sam star-spangled suit and a top hat to match, Allen Ray McGrew danced around in the front yard as he smoked a cigarette on July 4th — his favorite holiday of the year. A line of smoldering firework mortars lined the edge of the street behind him.

Hours later, a firework exploded on top of his head, killing him instantly.

Dorchester County sheriff's deputies found the 41-year-old HVAC worker lying dead in the road after rushing to the 100 block of Cottonwood Drive, where an Independence Day Block party had come to an abrupt end around 10:30 p.m.

Paige McGrew told deputies that her husband had placed the large firework on his head to "show off" after drinking for several hours, according to an incident report.

“He was holding this firework over his top hat,” Paige later told The Post and Courier. “I thought he was just showboating before he set it on the ground. I didn’t realize he had already lit it.”

His wife was telling McGrew to stop when the firework suddenly erupted and he collapsed, the report stated.

Coroner Paul Brouthers said the exploding device caused massive head injuries that would have killed McGrew immediately. He was officially pronounced dead at the scene at 11:10 p.m.

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