BONFIRE BACKFIRE: Screams as Paris carnival explosion injures 18
Parents were heard screaming in fear as they frantically searched for their children after a bonfire backfired at a popular French carnival.
Onlookers were hit with chunks of wood sent flying as the fireball ignited the sky at a town fair in Villepinte, north of Paris.
Video shows an effigy, reportedly known as Mr Carnival, explode into flames as a few hundred people, including the town’s mayor, had gathered to watch.
The sculpture made of wood and straw was reportedly supposed to be set on fire as part of a display, however something went wrong in the process.
The accidental bonfire explosion on Saturday (local time) left 18 injured, including three children.
Five of those injured, including one child, were hospitalised with serious injuries but their lives are not in danger, fire service spokeswoman Nathalie Crispin told AFP.
Crispin said the lighting of the bonfire was a tradition of the carnival.
The gasoline used to light the fire was apparently mishandled, however, prompting the explosion, she said.
The explosion was found to be an accident and there were no signs of arson or terrorism, according to police.
