DeLand man killed in explosion at Memorial Day bonfire, deputies say

DELAND, Fla. - A man was killed in an apparent explosion at a home on Memorial Day during an outdoor party, according to the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies responded to the home on 3rd Court around 3 a.m., where witnesses said the man, later identified as 51-year-old Michael D. Riedinger, went to the patio to tend the bonfire and was later found on the ground and next to the bonfire. The sheriff’s office released a 911 call from a witness pleading for rescue to try to help the victim.

"He’s literally dying. Can you send someone here? Somebody send an ambulance," a caller said on a 911 call, which was released Tuesday.

That caller said there was a graduation party at the home earlier.

"All the kids were gone. The adults were hanging out, and I don’t even know," the caller tells the dispatcher.

Another witness reported hearing a hissing noise, but no one was sure what happened or what exploded.

"There was like, I don’t know, like an explosion or something. He was walking out by the fire and something exploded. I don’t know," the caller said.

The sheriff's office said the cause of the explosion has not been identified and remains under investigation.