An 18-year-old tourist from Virginia had his foot severed after an explosion at Central Park in New York on Sunday, July 3.
According to CNN, the New York Police Department bomb squad is investigating the cause of the detonation, which appeared to be an “experiment with fireworks or handmade explosives.”
“We do not have any evidence of a constructed device or commercial-grade fireworks,” NYPD Deputy Chief John O’Connell said in a press conference on Sunday afternoon. “There are no specific or credible threats directed at New York for July Fourth.”
The teen, identified as Connor Golden, reportedly climbed down off a rock when the explosion went off. The victim’s two friends, Thomas Hinds, 20, and Matthew Stabile, 18, insisted that they didn’t have fireworks or other explosives.
“I got down the hill and boom, my ears were ringing,” Hinds told the New York Daily News. “I felt a wave, a gust hit me in the back. I turned around and saw [Connor] on the ground with his foot bleeding. It just demolished his foot.”
He added, “His foot was gone and he handled it pretty well. He’s a tough guy. … All he said was ‘get help.’”
Golden was taken to Bellevue Hospital with a “possible amputation,” a Fire Department of New York spokesperson told ABC News. Officials stated that the victim was in “serious but stable condition” as of Sunday afternoon.
