BOISE, Idaho — A massive firework explosion during the New Year's Eve celebrations in downtown Boise shattered windows in the AT&T building, cracked panes in the Capitol Rotunda, and injured a young girl.
An investigation into the incident is underway by Boise Police and Boise Fire, with the biggest question being— who is at fault for allowing such a destructive fireworks display?
In terms of the permitting process, Idaho News 6 has confirmed with the City of Boise that Boise Fire accepted a “Public Fireworks Display” permit application from SirJag Pyro Displays to use "aerial pyrotechnics and flame effects" during the NYE display. That fireworks permit coincided with a Special Event permit required by the City of Boise.
However, accountability will have to wait until the investigation by Boise Fire is complete.
Until then, questions around why glass windows shattered the way they did are also being posed.
The AT&T building has withstood numerous fireworks displays over the years without incident, making this year's window damage particularly noteworthy for glass experts and city officials.
"I heard about it on the news," said Sondra McMindes, a local pedestrian, of the explosion. When asked if she is worried about other glass windows in the downtown area, she replied, "I am not worried at all."
Glass experts say McMindes has the right attitude. The type of glass that broke plays a crucial role in understanding what happened.
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Glass comes in three main types: annealed, tempered, and laminated. The most common and most fragile is annealed, also known as plate glass. When it breaks, it turns into large, dangerous shards.
Steve Dooley of Valley Glass explained that it takes very specific conditions to shatter glass with sound alone.
"There's a natural frequency that the glass has itself," explained Dooley. "A noise over 100 decibels needs to vibrate that glass to that natural frequency, and [then] it takes on that vibration and releases that energy."
A perfect storm of conditions is required to shatter glass with noise, making the incident particularly unusual.
"It was really surprising to see that some of that annealed glass blew up like it did," Dooley added.
According to the Idaho Building Code, only doors and windows close to the ground must be made of safety glass, like tempered or laminated varieties.
However, the blast also cracked the safety glass that exists in the Capitol Rotunda, confirmed Idaho Fire Marshal Knut Sandahl.
The incident has raised questions about the intensity of the fireworks explosions themselves— a question city leaders will likely examine as they plan future celebrations.
Idaho News 6 will continue to provide updates on the investigation as more information becomes available
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
