All seven victims from Esparto fireworks explosion officially identified

All seven victims of last week’s fatal explosion at a fireworks facility in the rural Yolo County town of Esparto have been officially identified. 

The Yolo County Coroner’s Office completed autopsies and DNA analyses on the remains yesterday, and identified the individuals killed in the explosion as:

• Christopher Goltiao Bocog, 45, of San Francisco

• Neil Justin Li, 41, of San Francisco

• Joel Jeremias Melendez, 28, of Sacramento

• Carlos Javier Rodriguez-Mora, 43, of San Andreas

• Jesus Manaces Ramos, 18, of San Pablo

• Jhony Ernesto Ramos, 22, of San Pablo

• Angel Mathew Voller, 18, of Stockton

Officials say causes of death for each person remain undetermined, pending toxicology results. All seven bodies were located Friday. The July 1 explosion also injured two others, and started the nearly 80-acre Oakdale Fire.

Families frustrated at slow pace of information, demanding answers

The identifications come as family members of the victims have been asking for answers from Cal Fire, which is leading the investigation, and other agencies.

Outside of a media-only press conference Monday, Jhony Ramos spoke about the pain of losing his two sons, Jhony and Jesus. “ I want answers about my children,” he said in Spanish.

Ramos came to the press conference expecting some of those answers, believing that parents and others would be allowed to attend, but was turned away. He said at the time he had not been contacted by investigators, and felt ignored.

“They've made us eat dust for these past seven days,” he said. “I didn’t lose just one; I lost two. Even if it were only one, it’s still a tragedy. My pain is doubled.”

Earlier, at a media briefing days after the explosion, 18-year-old Syanna Ruiz also expressed frustration at the lack of information being conveyed to families. She accused fire crews of being too cautious and not prioritizing finding the victims.

Ruiz, who is pregnant, said Jesus Ramos was her boyfriend, and he was working his first day at the facility with her brothers-in-law, who were also missing. Joel Melendez was identified by family members as the stepbrother of Jesus and Jhony Ramos.

“We're all sick to our stomach and we're all waiting on the information that we shouldn’t receive until Saturday when I want to know today,” she said.

Explosion investigation continues, expert raises red flags

Cal Fire says it is “actively tracking down numerous leads and [has] served multiple search warrants as part of the investigation process,” into the Esparto explosion, but has declined to provide additional details.

Multiple media outlets reported Tuesday law enforcement officials executed a search warrant in San Francisco connected to the company associated with the Yolo County facility, Devastating Pyrotechnics.

While the investigation is still in its early stages, one expert who sits on Cal Fire’s General Fireworks Advisory Committee is raising concerns about the incident.

Julie Heckman is the Executive Director of the American Pyrotechnics Association, a major trade organization for the commercial fireworks industry. She said explosions at fireworks facilities are very rare, and usually occur during either the manufacturing or preparation of fireworks.

She says fireworks facilities need to align with regulations established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF). “I did not see that just based on my observations of looking at the structure of the warehouse,” Heckman told Insight Host Vicki Gonzalez.

She said the safe storage and separation of fireworks and explosive compounds is critical to preventing a significant accident. “Everything has to be separated so you don't have the domino effect when and if something goes wrong. And we had the domino effect in Esparto, unfortunately,” she said.

Heckman also said she was concerned about reports that the owner and CEO of Devastating Pyrotechnics was denied a federal permit by the ATF, and that the company was also missing local licenses to store fireworks on the Esparto property.

“This is a huge red flag,” she said. “I don't know how you could have a state license for professional display fireworks and not have a valid ATF license. States are allowed to be more restrictive than the federal regulations, but they are never supposed to be less.”

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