A Ferris wheel caught fire at a German summer music festival and injured at least thirty people, including four police officers, as per a report in the New York Post. The incident took place in a gondola at the Highfield Festival at Stormthaler Lake, at around 9.13 pm. The fire began in one lower tub and quickly spread to another, scaring the people on the ride.

Videos captured from the festival showed the Ferris wheel spinning despite the two gondolas being turned into fireballs. Further, thick, black smoke was also seen in the night sky with several people screaming.

Ferris wheel gondolas went up in flames yesterday at the Highfield Festival on the outskirts of Leipzig, Germany.

At least 30 people, including police officials have been injured according to reports from the region. pic.twitter.com/nMMfmxc4Pl

— The Secret Firefighter UK (@TheSecretFF999) August 18, 2024

The conductors stopped the ride and reversed it so that the burning vehicle was positioned close to the top of the wheel. The video showed how powerful the fire was-it blazed white at its centre.

According to the outlet, the 30 people who were treated for injuries sustained mild cases of smoke inhalation. However, two were seriously injured.

German rapper Ski Aggu was on stage when the blaze started and was also instructed to carry on with his performance despite the accident. “I was just told through my earpiece that I should not end the show under any circumstances,” the rapper said on his Instagram. He said he was told to continue performing to avoid “mass panic.”

Further, the two gondolas were successfully tipped upside down by firefighters to stop the fire from spreading. “We currently know that there are over 30 injured people, including four injured police officers, but all of them are probably slightly injured,” police spokeswoman Josephin Sader told the tabloid BILD.

The fire has been put out, leaving the two gondolas destroyed. According to the organisers, a technical issue with the Ferris wheel was the reason for the fire.
 

New Delhi:

A giant wheel installed at a Navratri Mela in Delhi’s Narela area stopped working midway after it developed a technical snag. Around 20 people, including four children and 12 women were safely rescued and no casualties were reported. 

Video of the incident has surfaced on the internet which shows several people stuck in the giant wheel. Further in the video, people can be seen trying to climb off the giant wheel on their own. 

“A rescue call was received at 11:10 pm on Wednesday night from Subhash Ramlila Maidan that more than 20 people were trapped on a giant swing,” a fire department official said on Thursday.

The fire department informed that two fire tenders were rushed to the spot, and 20 persons – four men, 12 women and four children were rescued safely from the swing.

Police said that legal action was being initiated against the organiser, and they were further looking into the incident.

In January, more than 60 people were rescued from a Ferris wheel at Orlando’s ICON Park in the United States after a power failure caused a malfunction and a small fire at the base of the ride. 

“It’s on fire! Holy f****,” a person could be heard yelling in the video shared on Twitter. “Multiple emergency units are on scene at Orlando Icon Park as multiple people are trapped at the Eye Ferris wheel after it lost power as electrical sparks can be seen sparking,” the caption of the post read.