The woman killed at an Iowa gender-reveal party over the weekend helped “inadvertently” create a pipe bomb that exploded, investigators said Monday.
The victim was identified as Pamela Kreimeyer, 56, of Knoxville, Iowa.
She was killed instantly Saturday when the gender-reveal announcement device exploded, officials said. Also on hand were four other members of her family and the expectant mother.
"This family got together for what they thought was going to be a happy event with no intent for anyone to get hurt. What ended up happening was that Pamela Kreimeyer, a wife, mother and grandmother, was killed by a piece of metal where a metal stand, gunpowder and colored powder were involved," Marion County Sheriff Jason Sanholdt said.
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The metal piece struck Kreimeyer in the head, his office said.
The office said family members used gunpowder to create a homemade stand that was supposed to blow colorful powder indicating the child's sex, but tape over the top of the metal tubing inadvertently created a pipe bomb that sent shrapnel flying, The Associated Press reported.
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The sheriff said the incident was a reminder that "anytime someone mixes these things there is a high potential for serious injury or death.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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