Expert Says Maine Man Killed By Fireworks Should Have Had License

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — A Maine pyrotechnics expert says the man who died during a fireworks accident shouldn't have had access to professional grade explosives.

Central Maine Pyrotechnics President Steven Marston says 57-year-old Timothy Whitney Sr., of Lewiston, needed state and federal licenses to use the fireworks that ended up killing him Sunday in Sabattus. The Sun Journal reports Whitney had no such licenses.

Marston says the licenses require extensive training to obtain.

Consumer-grade fireworks have been legal in the state since 2012. Towns can prohibit their use, but Sabattus allows them.

A spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety could not be reached for comment Monday.

(Information from: Sun-Journal, http://www.sunjournal.com)