DeLAND, Fla. – A DeLand-area man was killed in an apparent explosion early Monday during an outdoor graduation party with a bonfire, deputies said.
The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office said Michael D. Riedinger, 51, died around 4 a.m. at a home in the 2900 block of 3rd Court near DeLand.
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Sheriff’s officials said Riedinger suffered severe injuries that appeared to have been caused by an explosion.
“We had a bonfire going and he came over to the fire and something blew up... he’s literally dying. Can you please come here?” a woman told a 911 dispatcher as another person can be heard screaming and crying in the background of the call.
According to the sheriff’s office, witnesses told deputies that Riedinger had gone from the patio area to tend to the bonfire around 3:30 a.m.
One of the witnesses said he heard a loud hissing sound for several seconds, according to officials. Another witness reported hearing a loud noise, like something hitting the ground, the sheriff’s office said.
When the witnesses went to check on Riedinger, they found him lying unresponsive with extensive injuries near the fire, sheriff’s officials said.
A woman described the scene in a 911 call, adding she thinks there was an apparent explosion near the fire where the group of adults were gathered after a graduation party.
“He was walking out here by the fire and something exploded, I don’t know,” she told the 911 operator. “We had a graduation party earlier. All the kids were gone. The adults were hanging out and I don’t even know (what happened).”
According to the 911 call, the Riedinger’s wife, a certified paramedic, was tending to her husband’s wounds while they waited for an ambulance.
“His wife is right next to him. She’s trying to keep him alive,” the woman said.
An initial investigation did not identify any source of the apparent explosion, the sheriff’s office said.
The state Fire Marshal’s Office will conduct an investigation into the cause of the explosion.