WESTMINSTER : Man Who’s Injured Firing Cannon Dies
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A 30-year-old Westminster man who lost three limbs when an antique cannon he tried to fire on New Year’s Eve exploded died from his injuries Thursday night at UCI Medical Center in Orange, a hospital spokeswoman said.
William R. Batman, whose legs and right arm were amputated after the accident, died at 8:15 p.m., spokeswoman Elaine Beno said Friday.
The explosion happened just before 10:30 p.m. Tuesday in the back yard of a house in the 9000 block of Jasmine Avenue in Fountain Valley. Batman fired the cannon, which belonged to a friend who displayed it as an antique, during a New Year’s Eve celebration.
Fire officials said Batman stuffed 1 1/2 cups of gun powder into the 3-foot-long cannon and packed it with toilet paper.
Police said the cannon exploded when Batman fired the antique a second time after his first firing attempt failed.
The explosion blew out the windows in the rear of the house and injured Batman’s fiancee and her 6-year-old son. Neither was identified, and their conditions were not known Friday.
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