At least 23 people were injured when two single-wheeled gondolas caught fire at a music festival near Leipzig in eastern Germany, German news agency dpa reported on Sunday (August 18th).
The accident occurred at the Highfield festival at Lake Strömthal near Leipzig.
The fire started in one gondola and then spread to a second on Saturday night, local police said. The operator of the wheel told dpa that there were no passengers sitting in the gondola in which the fire started.
Details in a statement from police in the state of Saxony said 65 people received medical treatment and 16 were taken to hospitals for further treatment, including four with burns and one with injuries from a fall. None of the injured were in life-threatening condition Saturday.
Police posted an update on X (formerly Twitter) Sunday regarding their investigation into the cause of the fire.
“After the fire, investigators were deployed and an initial assessment was made. In an unknown manner, material under the Ferris wheel caught fire. As a result, the fire spread to a gondola. The investigation is still ongoing,” the statement said.
German rapper Ski Aggu was on stage at the festival during the incident. in an Instagram storyAggu said he was disappointed and shocked.
His statement, translated from German to English, said he was told into his earpiece to continue his performance to avoid mass panic in the crowd.
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