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Lit firework thrown into man's convertible, explodes while stopped at intersection

Colin Kirby firework hits convertible
Posted at 3:49 PM, Jul 15, 2021
and last updated 2021-07-15 16:44:02-04

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) -- A red-hot firework thrown into a car in Nashville traffic on July 4 is now the subject of a police investigation.

Around 10:15 p.m. on the Fourth of July, Colin Kirby was leaving after watching the city's fireworks show when a lit firework was tossed into his open convertible.

"They lit it, then rolled down the window and threw it," said Colin Kirby. "At the same time, they went around the corner."

Kirby was driving in his convertible with a friend when people in a white car pulled up beside him. Someone in the backseat tossed the firework, which landed behind Kirby's head.

Kirby's friends were behind him in a pickup truck. The truck happened to have a camera on the dash, which captured the entire ordeal.

"I didn't know what in the world was going on," Kirby said.

Miraculously, Kirby and his passenger weren't seriously injured by the flaming firework.

"It could've landed in between us, burned our sides. It could've landed in my lap. Tons of veins in your legs. I wouldn't have been here," Kirby said.

The damage to his car is much worse. The firework singed the folded convertible top, trim, and door of his car.

Metro Nashville Police are trying to track down the white sedan and the people in it. And the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) is looking into the case.

"I think they need to make an example out of them. I hate to say that, but I think they should... at least out of the driver and the person that threw it," Kirby said.

This story originally reported by Hannah McDonald on NewsChannel5.com.