Expectant parents fired a cannon to celebrate their baby shower. It exploded and killed a guest.
Katie Shepherd, The Washington Post
Feb. 8, 2021
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A Michigan couple tied balloons to the mailbox and set out a chalkboard with a hand-drawn sign announcing their baby shower on Saturday. To mark the occasion, the expectant parents in Gaines Township, Mich., fired a celebratory cannon as the small party stood outside in the snow in the backyard.
But the gesture went horribly wrong when the gunpowder inside the cannon exploded, fracturing its metal frame and launching shrapnel into the air.
One piece of the cannon flew about 10 to 15 feet and struck 26-year-old Evan Thomas Silva in the chest, seriously injuring him, Michigan State Police said in a statement to WJRT on Sunday. The man, who was a friend of the hosts, later died at Hurley Medical Center in nearby Flint, Mich.