Youths find trouble after the Fourth

One is arrested and another is hospitalized in separate incidents after the holiday.

By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published July 7, 2007

A small tube of fireworks that shot green flames, burned Fred Davis, 11, on the face, hands and chest. He was discharged from Tampa General Hospital.
	[Times photo: MELISSA LYTTLE]

TAMPA - The Fourth of July seemed calm, oddly quiet on Hillsborough's side of Tampa Bay.

Turns out, the drama came a little late.

An 11-year-old boy spent Thursday night in the hospital after he and friends staged their own fireworks display.

Another youth's plan went awry early Friday in Brandon. Discarded fireworks cartridges may be to blame for a garage fire that burned his family's minivan.

Police also arrested a 16-year-old boy accused of tossing a firecracker at an officer, burning his pants and patrol car.

That teen, Remus R. Randall, faces charges of battery on a law enforcement officer and criminal mischief, said police spokeswoman Andrea Davis. He has 17 prior arrests, state records show.

Fred Davis curled up in a hospital bed inside Tampa General Hospital on Friday. Small burn marks dotted his hands. A thick white bandage covered his chest near his heart.

"I got hit by a firecracker, " he said. "My friend lit it up. He thought it went into the sky, but it fell on me."

Fred is 11, a soon-to-be sixth-grader at Memorial Middle School. He lives in Robles Park with his mom.

On July 5, Fred and his cousins and best friend were playing in the neighborhood. Fred had just finished some chicken and dumplings and Sprite. He was looking forward to hanging out with his girlfriend, who is 10.

That's when the boys said they spotted a discarded bundle of fireworks in the bushes.

His cousins didn't get to light fireworks on the holiday, so they wanted to give it a try, he said.

The next thing he remembers is the hot green sparks that flew toward him like little beads, pricking and burning his skin.

An ambulance came, and Fred got an IV in his arm. His dad came with him, he said, and comforted him with the news that he, too, had been singed by fireworks as a child.

Fred was released Friday afternoon. Doctors told his mom the burns would heal in a couple of weeks.

Still Fred has a message: "Don't play with firecrackers any more unless you are an adult."

Miles away in Brandon, another possible fireworks debacle unfolded.

Hillsborough Fire Rescue went to a home at 812 Smith Bay Drive at 12:47 a.m. Friday after a report of a fire.

Flames shot through the roof of the garage, and the family's 2005 Chrysler Town and Country minivan was a total loss, said Fire Rescue spokesman Ray Yeakley.

One firefighter was taken to Brandon Regional Hospital for minor smoke inhalation after falling debris knocked his mask loose, Yeakley said.

The homeowner, Ernest Dennison, 46, could not be reached for comment.

Yeakley said Dennison's son had shot off fireworks earlier and threw the cartridges in the garage garbage can.

The official cause of the fire was listed as undetermined, Yeakley said.

Staff writer Casey Cora contributed to this report. Abbie VanSickle can be reached at vansickle@sptimes.com or 226-3373.

[Last modified July 7, 2007, 00:30:36]