Police: Latrobe Teen Put M-80 Between Thighs To Muffle Explosion

Police said a Latrobe teenager who lost his right hand and leg in an explosion has acknowledged playing with a powerful firework, and was not targeted or threatened as he first told police.

Wesley Kimmick, 17, of Latrobe, remains hospitalized at UPMC Presbyterian in Pittsburgh after a Jan. 10 explosion at his grandmother's home.

Latrobe police said the teenager was playing with a large firecracker like an M-80 in his grandmother's house.

"There was a quarter stick of dynamite in the house where he was staying, and he got a hold of it and it blew him up basically," said his mother, Heather Adams.

The boy kept lighting and extinguishing the fuse and when it wouldn't go out, police said he put the firework between his thighs and covered it with his right hand in hopes of muffling the explosion.

Police said the boy first told them the explosive blew up in a backpack after he was the target of threats from unknown people.

Previous Stories: January 12, 2009: Latrobe Teen Loses Hand, Leg After Playing With Explosives