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Exploding ammunition injures Ventura teacher
By John Scheibe, jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com
April 4, 2006
Don't know what to say about this. Don't know if I should laugh or cry at some people's stupidity.
By John Scheibe, jscheibe@VenturaCountyStar.com
April 4, 2006
Part of a Ventura instructor's right hand was severed Monday afternoon after he struck an object on his classroom desk against an old 40 mm round of ammunition while teaching.
The accidental discharge also left Robert Colla with severe burns and minor shrapnel wounds to his forearms and torso, said Tom Weinell, a captain with the Ventura Fire Department.
No one else was injured in the explosion, even though there were 20 to 25 people in the classroom with Colla at the Ventura Adult Education Center on Valentine Road when the explosion occurred at 4:06 p.m.
Colla was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition Monday evening.
"It was just a horrible accident," said Dennis Huston, who teaches computer design alongside Colla.
Huston said he had his back turned to Colla and was only about three feet away when he heard a loud bang.
He turned around to find Colla screaming, his right hand mangled.
The explosion sent shrapnel flying around the classroom, Huston said. One piece went into the ceiling, while another landed where a student would normally sit. Huston said the student was absent Monday.
Colla had found the 40 mm round while hunting years ago, Huston said. He used it as a paperweight and "obviously he didn't think the round was live," Huston said.
"He'd had it for years and years and nothing had happened before," Huston said. He described the round as about an inch-and-a-half wide and about five inches long.
The explosion also destroyed a computer keyboard, scattering some of the keys around Colla's desk.
Barry Tronstad, the center's director, said he didn't hear the explosion even though he was in the building at the time.
"I was alerted by the smoke alarm," Tronstad said.
The center is run by the Ventura Unified School District
The accidental discharge also left Robert Colla with severe burns and minor shrapnel wounds to his forearms and torso, said Tom Weinell, a captain with the Ventura Fire Department.
No one else was injured in the explosion, even though there were 20 to 25 people in the classroom with Colla at the Ventura Adult Education Center on Valentine Road when the explosion occurred at 4:06 p.m.
Colla was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he was listed in stable condition Monday evening.
"It was just a horrible accident," said Dennis Huston, who teaches computer design alongside Colla.
Huston said he had his back turned to Colla and was only about three feet away when he heard a loud bang.
He turned around to find Colla screaming, his right hand mangled.
The explosion sent shrapnel flying around the classroom, Huston said. One piece went into the ceiling, while another landed where a student would normally sit. Huston said the student was absent Monday.
Colla had found the 40 mm round while hunting years ago, Huston said. He used it as a paperweight and "obviously he didn't think the round was live," Huston said.
"He'd had it for years and years and nothing had happened before," Huston said. He described the round as about an inch-and-a-half wide and about five inches long.
The explosion also destroyed a computer keyboard, scattering some of the keys around Colla's desk.
Barry Tronstad, the center's director, said he didn't hear the explosion even though he was in the building at the time.
"I was alerted by the smoke alarm," Tronstad said.
The center is run by the Ventura Unified School District
Don't know what to say about this. Don't know if I should laugh or cry at some people's stupidity.
@ OTBOT on MTG's post.
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