photo credit: Kent Porter / The Press Democrat www.pressdemocrat.com 
Press Democrat photojournalist Kent Porter captures a fireworks warehouse explosion in Esparto.

One of Sonoma County’s most award-winning photojournalists was in the right place at the right time to capture shots of a harrowing explosion in Yolo County. 

Pulitzer Prize-winning Press Democrat photographer Kent Porter has documented some of the most impactful things to happen in Sonoma County – from the devastation of the Tubbs Fire to the Black Lives Matter protests – and is generally the first on the scene of breaking news. On Tuesday, July 1st, through a series of missed opportunities, he ended up right next to the fireworks warehouse in Esparto just minutes before it exploded. KRCB's Noah Abrams caught up with Porter in downtown Santa Rosa to get the tale.

“I was on the Central Valley for another assignment – for a news, a general news assignment," said Porter.

Porter got sidelined for a vegetation fire in Petaluma, which delayed his journey just enough to get caught in a traffic jam on I-80. After getting shots for the news assignment, he saw smoke on the horizon, which ended up being a 15-acre blaze called the Brown Fire.

“I went and covered the brushfire in Vacaville, and then I met up with the CAL Fire’s Boggs Mountain Helitack and they said they were going to another fire in Winters, which I thought, ‘Oh that’s just north of me,’ so I’ll go," Porter said.

This could have been just like the hundreds of other wildfires Porter has covered, but he had no idea what was about to happen. He saw that the fire was closer to Esparto and tried multiple ways to get closer to the smoke and flames.

“Finally got through a roadblock with the CHP," said Porter. "Got real close, probably 400, 500 yards from the, you know at that time I was the only one there. Really there was a, there were a couple fire units there. But I was the only media there, the only press. I was there maybe 15 minutes and then it blew.”

The percussion of the blast was intense.

“It was a shock wave basically, and after I saw the ball of fire comin’ up, it took about a second and half for the soundwaves to hit us," said Porter. "And it just goes right through you. And there was a big sound, a big clap of thunder. But it was something that – it’s sorta like seeing somebody break an arm or a leg, and you hear that sound? That’s what that sound is like. It’s like, you never forget that sound.”

Porter says he’s lucky he wasn’t hit with shrapnel.

“I just – I couldn’t – I, I couldn’t focus. I just kept shooting pictures, kept shooting pictures, just kind of on overdrive, automatic," Porter said. "And it wasn’t until later that I saw my picture that I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I have a nice picture.’”

The photos show a massive explosion filled with streaks of colored smoke from the fireworks, as well as lots of debris in the air.

Porter grieves for those who are missing after the blast.

“It really breaks my heart. You know, it’s a really small, close-knit community," said Porter. "I didn’t know they had a fireworks place out there, had no idea. No idea whatsoever. I just thought it was somebody’s house with a lot of fireworks and ammunition. When it exploded, it really got everybody’s attention.”

As of Thursday, July 3rd, there are currently 7 people unaccounted for and the investigation into the explosion is ongoing.