"Somebody Is Severely Burned": SeaWorld Sued After Three Died In Horrific Firework Explosion

An explosion left three dead, and now the family of one of the injured victims is suing multiple companies, including a prominent Orlando theme park Resort’s owner.

Last December, three people died in an explosion at Magic in the Sky on Central Florida Parkway. Orange County responders attended the 911 call; the incident saw five people taken to the hospital, but sadly three died. They were David Gonzalez, 22, Lindsey Phillips, 23, and Landon Bourland, 24.

Multiple calls were made to 911 detailing the horror that unfolded at the Magic in the Sky warehouse. Calls captured by ClickOrlando at the time reveal that at least one person was attending to three injured workers while on call to the emergency services, and for one victim, they said that their clothes and the “outer layer” of their skin had burned off. This is just one example of the harrowing scenes from the fireworks explosion.

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At the time of the incident, Battalion Chief Garrett Wienckowski said:

“Just loud explosions. Could’ve been mortars, bottle rockets, there were very loud explosions. You could see the explosions from outside of the building. Crews on the interior were making rescues while all this was going on.”

Now, the family of one of the victims of the deadly explosion is suing Magic in the Sky, as well as SeaWorld Entertainment, for negligence.

SeaWorld Sued After Three Died In Horrific Firework Explosion

ClickOrlando reports that the family of Elizabeth Tiralongo is suing Magic in the Sky Florida, Magic in the Sky, and SeaWorld Entertainment in a lawsuit. The litigation details how staff were allegedly not properly trained, that the premises were unlicensed, and that the smoke alarms were not functioning properly.

After the explosion in December, an Orange County commissioner discovered the warehouse did not, in fact, have a license to house fireworks, but it was listed as storing furniture. As a result of this discovery, the lawsuit describes how SeaWorld Entertainment — who is a partner of the fireworks company — should have known about the unsafe working conditions and put actions in place to minimize employee risk.

The suit, in part, reads (via ClickOrlando), “[SeaWorld Entertainment] permitted, endorsed, and profited from unlicensed, unapproved, unpermitted business operations of its partners…”

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Last year, after the incident occurred on Central Florida Parkway, Magic in the Sky, released a statement to thank first responders and emergency services as well as Orlando Regional Medical Center (ORMC) for assisting with the injured individuals. The company went on to say how a “complete and thorough” review would occur with findings made public as and when appropriate.

SeaWorld Entertainment is yet to comment on the lawsuit.

Inside the Magic will continue to update this developing story.