Jalama Beach campers have front-row seat to rocket explosion

JALAMA BEACH, Calif. -- Campers pitching their tents at Jalama Beach for the holiday weekend got a front-row seat to the rocket explosion that happened on Thursday night.

At around 7:02 p.m., the Alpha rocket from Firefly Aerospace Inc. was launched from the Vandenberg Space Force base but was terminated in the sky.

Many campers saw the whole launch just a few miles south of Vandenberg Space Force base.

"We knew it would be the perfect viewing spot, so as soon as we heard the little rumble, we were all outside," said Sherri Giovanacci, a camper at Jalama Beach.

"You could see a nice view of it. Clear. You could see it take off. It was really cool to see," said Jeremy Calderon.

Many campers were shocked when the rocket launch then exploded in the sky.

"We saw that it was this thing here, shining with different colors, and then all of a sudden, just boom! It exploded," said ​​​​​Daniel Calderon, a camper who witnessed the explosion.

"It was pretty wild. Everyone in the park kind of went "oh" and "ah" at the same time and everyone turned their head and gasped," said Sara Richmond.

Vandenberg officials believe that debris may have fallen down onto the local area.

Jalama State Beach rangers say they have not yet received any reports of any campers finding debris in the area.

"I didn't see any debris flying away from it, falling down from it. I just saw the cloud there and then gradually it dissipated," said Daniel Calderon.

Any debris that might be on the ground has been determined to be unsafe and officials advise individuals to stay at least 50 feet away from the debris.

If anyone sees something they suspect might be debris, they are urged to call Firefly Aerospace Inc. hotline at 805-605-2734.

Despite the explosion, Jeremy Calderon says his Labor Day weekend will continue on, "Oh yeah, for sure. This is going to be a good memorable family weekend!"