[UPDATE BELOW]
A Queens man died this morning and an explosive device may have been the cause. FDNY tells us that around 9:28 a.m. a call came in regarding a firecracker explosion at 112-20 111th Avenue, a home near the Aqueduct Racetrack. Authorities then suspected it was a shotgun discharge, but now believe it is related to fireworks or other explosive devices, although the investigation is ongoing. The man, describes as a white male in his 50s, was found dead at the scene.
NBC is reporting that a bomb squad is at the scene. We'll update as more information becomes available.
[UPDATE / 3:00 p.m.]Sources tell DNAinfo's Murray Weiss that the 50-year-old victim appears to have been making rudimentary pipe bombs using fireworks, when one exploded and "ripped apart his stomach." A police source describes the man as an "emotionally disturbed person."
A neighbor tells the news outlet that the man believed that someone had broken into the home he lived in with his father, and nailed the windows shut. "He thought someone from his job was trying to get him," the neighbor said, noting that when he saw the man last night he found him "acting strange." "He was a little uptight. He was depressed. But he wasn't violent. He never messed with anybody," he said.
