Sixteen members of the Orange County Sheriff's Department SWAT team were injured Wednesday afternoon in an explosion at an FBI training center in Irvine, according to authorities.
The explosion occurred around 1 p.m. at the Jerry Crowe Regional Tactical Training Center, according to Sheriff's Sgt. Frank Gonzalez.
The SWAT team was conducting its annual joint training indoors with a bomb squad at the time, he said. The FBI did not participate and had loaned them the facilities for the exercise.
Fifteen people were taken to local hospitals. One person suffered a leg injury that will require surgery but is not life-threatening. Two others have superficial injuries, including injuries to the back and legs. The other 13 people went to the hospital as a precaution due to dizziness and ringing in the ears, but many have already been discharged.
González had no further information about what may have caused the explosion.
“That will be part of the investigation,” he said. “Trying to figure out exactly why that happened.”
The Sheriff's Department and the FBI are investigating the incident.
Times staff writer Richard Winton contributed to this article.
