A Washington state home filled with roughly 700 pounds of illegal fireworks violently exploded after the owner allegedly lit a cigarette, injuring three firefighters and wreaking havoc on a neighboring property.

Fire crews responding to a house fire on Whidbey Island Wednesday afternoon were standing just 20 feet away when the residence exploded, sending debris flying hundreds of feet as continuous blasts echoed for hours, according to KING 5 News.

Horrifying doorbell camera footage captured massive orange flames erupting from the windows just seconds before the entire structure blew apart, unleashing an ear-splitting blast similar to that of a missile. 

'It was like a war zone at first,' neighbor Tom Selvidge told the outlet. 'I'm mad, angry, that there was someone with fireworks that close. It's deadly.'

The explosion sent shock waves through the island neighborhood and left three firefighters injured, with the most seriously hurt now facing the possibility of losing a finger.

'We were extremely lucky,' Central Whidbey Fire and Rescue Chief Jerry Helm said, according to the outlet.

'You change the timetable on this by a second or two either way, and the outcome would be very different,' he added.

Officials revealed that two residents who were also injured in the blast drove themselves to the hospital and are expected to each make a full recovery.

The immense force damaged three homes in total, including two that were completely obliterated. One belonged to neighbor Tanya Hernandez-Garzon, who recalled the force of the explosion blowing her doors open. 

'Cabinets, dishes - everything's on the floor. In the bathroom, things are hanging on the wall that are all in the bathtub on the floor. Our wedding pictures, all that is off the walls and broken on the floor,' she told KOMO News.

She said that, thankfully, her family was not home and her five special-needs dogs, who were inside at the time, managed to escape the burning heat and chaos. 

'They were actually able to save our dogs, so our dogs are at the vet right now being checked for their breathing to make sure that they are OK,' she told MyNorthWest News.

'We're devastated by this. We can't get back into our home. We just had a flood on Mother's Day. We have a lot going on right now, and this is just icing on it.'

While the homeowners of the house with the fireworks have not been named, investigators said they are cooperating with authorities as they work to determine why hundreds of pounds of fireworks were stored inside their home, according to KIRO 7 News.

'I believe it was a significant amount… probably in the 700 pound range - enough to fill a pallet. I believe this person was buying fireworks for an event they were doing,' Chief Helm told the outlet.

'They were smoking around the fireworks, and some smoking ash or something like that fell into the box of fireworks and caused it to start the process of going off,' he added.

Neighbors have since come forward with claims of previous complaints they said they raised with the homeowners after witnessing crates of fireworks being carried into the home and illegal burning unfolding in the backyard. 

'He was burning toxic stuff three days before that,' Amy Tuthill told KIRO 7.

'I said "you need to stop that, you're smoking us out,"' she added. 'Other people mentioned it too. He didn't have a lot of regard for the neighborhood and what his actions were doing.'

No arrests have yet been made, though the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has begun assisting the sheriff's office in its ongoing investigation. 

Footage of the moment resembled nothing short of a horrifying stunt movie scene, with a blast so loud locals said it was felt for miles.

Steve Bondelid, who lives near the site, said he suddenly heard a 'boom,' adding that his house was 'rattling and shaking' from the impact, according to KOMO. 

'I was hearing all kinds of stuff rattle at the instant of that impact. I could feel it in my chest when it hit, too, inside the house,' he told the outlet.

The blast sent debris flying as thick plumes of smoke filled the air and nearby neighbors ran, with the intensity forcing immediate evacuations. 

Meanwhile, Helm said crews knew within seconds of the explosion that fireworks were what was detonating across the usually quiet neighborhood. 

'Once the explosion happened and we heard and saw what was going on, fireworks were shooting across the road and hitting a couple of rigs,' the chief explained. 'It was pretty obvious once the explosion happened what it was.' 

Hernandez-Garzon told KING 5: 'It was crazy, just insane. Very hot. Very big and very scary. Fireworks were exploding over and over and over. It was very bad. It went on for hours.'

She said that she was on her way home to let out her dogs when she saw her house on fire. Crews were able to save her bird and dogs, though her family was left displaced in its wake. 

'Our main concern was to get the dogs out of the house - everything else is replaceable but not my animals,' she told Fox 13 Seattle News.

'Last night we spent the night in the truck. Me and the 16-year-old, we stayed in the truck. Tonight we're working on where we're going to go.' 

Two deputy chiefs and one firefighter were taken to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, and all three have since been released. One of them underwent hand surgery. 

'If the guys had been standing in a spot a second later or a second earlier, we probably would have all three of them down at Harborview right now,' Helm told KING 5.

Investigators believe smoking materials were present near the large stockpile of fireworks and that, once lit, they ignited the explosion. 

Island County Sheriff Rick Felici also said he believes they were intended for an upcoming private event given that the Fourth of July is approaching, according to the outlet.

'Preliminarily, we believe this particular thing was an order that had been placed for an event that was going to happen out on the Olympic Peninsula somewhere,' he said.

Federal agents with the ATF launched their investigation the following morning after fire officials announced that there was an 'unexploded ordnance' still at the scene, according to MyNorthWest News.

When Hernandez-Garzon was questioned about a potential cause, she did not hesitate: 'Oh, I'm sure it's the fireworks.' 

'He bought a truckload of fireworks last year, brought it in over Deception Pass in a semi-truck, and he wanted to offload it on our property and we said no,' she explained, speaking to the outlet.

'There was a pallet in the middle of the street... I guess yesterday he had, I think, three or four truckloads delivered.'    

Fire officials are expected to remain at the scene as the investigation continues, while the sheriff's office assists in determining exactly how many fireworks were stored inside the home and what types were involved, according to KOMO. 

Officials said citations or criminal charges remain a possibility depending on the findings of the investigation. 

While the community is still reeling from the impact, residents expressed their gratitude that no one was killed despite the massive force of the explosion and the widespread destruction it caused.

'We're just fortunate the people we know were able to get out,' neighbor Chris Tincher told KING 5.

Chief Helm used the incident to emphasize the severe consequences that can result from such actions, describing fireworks as a 'ticking time bomb.' 

'When you have fireworks like that at a house, there’s no telling when they can go off,' he told KIRO 7.

Central Whidbey Island Fire & Rescue have since launched a GoFundMe page on behalf of the firefighters, writing that Wednesday's explosion was 'a stark reminder of the risks our first responders face every day to keep our community safe.'

'Our firefighters show up for this community whenever they are needed, and we are so thankful for the kindness, care, and support being shown back to them,' the description reads.

As of Friday afternoon, the department had raised nearly $5,000 toward its $13,000 goal.

A separate GoFundMe page was created for Hernandez-Garzon and her family, which has raised $5,440 toward its $6,000 goal. 

'Tanya Hernandez-Garzon, founder of Queen Bee Food Pantry on Whidbey Island, and her family lost their home when a neighbor's house caught fire and both homes exploded,' the description reads.

'Due to the circumstances next door, a criminal investigation is underway. In the meantime, the family needs replacement housing, food, clothing, and more,' it added.

'Now they need support from us. Let's rally around them!'