SoCal landscaper loses hand, eyesight after unknowingly picking up illegal firework that exploded

TORRANCE, Calif. (KABC) -- A landscaper working in a Torrance neighborhood was severely injured in an explosion after he picked up an illegal firework he thought was a piece of trash.

The blast left Hector Mayoral, 37, without his left hand.

"What he worries the most is that he can't see anything out of his right eye and he can barely see out of his left, and he's just asking for some help because he just wants to see again," an interpreter for Mayoral said.

Mayoral has been working in the Torrance neighborhood for 15 years. A neighbor came to his rescue when the firework exploded in his hand.

Footage capturing the explosion showed a plume of smoke coming from a truck.

"The truck door was open and he was sitting kind of sideways on the driver's seat, and there was a lot of blood and flesh on the ground just outside of his door," neighborhood resident Ken Lucas said.

Mayoral said he's worried about how his injuries will impact his future.

Aside from landscaping, he's also a pizza maker and collaborates with local restaurants.

His customers are now showing him support with a GoFundMe page set up in his name.

"He's very grateful and he knows a lot of the donations come from his customers, his landscaping company and his pizzeria company, but though he's grateful he knows it's a life-changing injury," the interpreter said. "He'll never get his left hand back again."

Money raised from the GoFundMe will go toward paying for Mayoral's medical bills.