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Utah man in critical condition after fireworks malfunction

Posted at 5:49 PM, Jul 05, 2013
and last updated 2013-07-06 01:53:01-04

WASHINGTON, Utah - A Utah man underwent surgery after being injured by a box of fireworks during a show in Arizona Thursday night.

40-year-old Jeremy Lee of Washington City is an pyrotechnician working for Lantis, a Utah-based fireworks company.

Lee was operating a Fourth of July show in Kingman, Ariz., on Thursday night when the fireworks stopped working properly several minutes into the show.

When he went to investigate, the fireworks detonated improperly out of the side of their tubes and struck him in the head.

Lee is in critical condition and is being treated for a brain injury, facial burns, facial  fractures and the likely loss of an eye.

Lee's brother Russel Alan Lee posted an update on his Facebook page on Friday night.

"He was Life-Flighted to Vegas where he has undergone several procedures to reconstruct his face. It is still unclear whether he will survive or not, and if he does, it is uncertain how extensive his brain damage will be," the post read.