Technicians were preparing a pyrotechnic product destruction session as a follow-up to the morning session; they placed a wire mesh cage above those products considered capable of becoming airborne. Contact of the cage with the pyrotechnic compound trail intended to be ignited initiated the combustion. The technicians were not injured, but the tarpaulin covering the trailer used to transport the products to their destruction destination was completely demolished.

The operator specified a new set of operating procedures featuring:

• The pyrotechnic compound trail was to be prepared only once the wire mesh cage had been installed.
• The equipment used for the destruction step was not to be reused without first being allowed to cool in water or for at least 24 hours.
• Transport vehicles were to be immediately removed from the site following their unloading.