Boy Scouts leader dies in bottle rocket accident near Morongo Basin
A Boy Scouts event turned deadly in Johnson Valley near the Morongo Basin this weekend.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Dept. said 50-year-old Michael Bentley of Highland, was attending the Boy Scouts of America annual Rocket Rave event Saturday afternoon, where homemade rockets are launched.
Bentley was watching near a friend who launched a rocket. The launch was successful, but Bentley lost sight of the “bottle rocket” and it came down and struck him in the face as he was looking up.
Two off-duty deputies were in the area and they quickly responded to the emergency.
The California Highway Patrol air lifted Bentley to Desert Regional Hospital where he later died from his injuries.
