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CEDAR CITY — Several spectators were injured during the opening ceremonies of the Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games Friday night.
Around 10:30 p.m., a firework landed near spectators just outside of Southern Utah University's Eccles Colosseum, according to Nikki Koontz, executive director of communication for the university.
Four people were injured, Koontz reported. Patients were treated by some medical staff on scene, and three of them were taken to Cedar City Hospital in a private vehicle.
Both Tim Strand and his wife, Charise, were injured.
"The firework pretty much hit my wife in the chest, abdomen area, and bounced off her and then exploded on the ground about two feet from us," said Strand. "I had to have a couple of stitches in the ear from where it hit and the back of the head and had some burns and stuff on my back where it went through my shirt and on my leg."
The cause of the accident is still unknown. A Utah Summer Games spokeswoman said Saturday that the safety of their athletes and spectators are their highest priority. She said they do have safety protocols in place and they're doing an investigation to find out what happened.
Further information was not immediately available.
Contributing: Sean Moody, KSL TV
