Bomb Squad Brought In After Woman Accidentally Lights Stick Of Dynamite Instead Of Candle

A local bomb squad had to be brought in after a woman in the US mistakenly lit a stick of dynamite, thinking it was a candle.

The 30-year-old woman had grabbed the "quarter stick of dynamite" - which was reportedly left behind by the previous occupants - during a blackout at her home in Connecticut.

According to a police spokesperson, the unnamed woman and her family had headed out in the storm to buy back-up lighting but the shop was closed.

"The family remembered that when they purchased their home two years ago, there were a couple of what they thought were candles, left in the basement by the previous residents of the home or homeowners," Av Harris explained.

After lighting the supposed candle, it exploded in her hand and blew out a nearby window. The Bridgeport Fire Department were called to the property, and the woman was rushed to hospital.

"She suffered extreme injuries to one of her hands," Harris said, before revealing that she had lost several fingers. "She also suffered serious injuries to her face."

As the firies searched the house, they found a second "dynamic device", at which point the Connecticut State Police bomb squad were called in to safely remove and detonate the explosive.

The woman's husband and two children, who were in the house at the time, were unharmed.