Up to 30 people are injured including many children ‘after mobile phones thrown onto a bonfire’ during a Jewish celebration in north London explode causing huge fireball
Up to thirty people including many children were injured last night as an explosion sent a fireball into the crowd during a Jewish festival bonfire in north London.
Many of those injured at the Lag BaOmer event in Stamford Hill suffered facial burns, emergency service workers said.
Ten people are believed to have been hospitalised. Their conditions are not known.
The explosion sent a fireball into the crowd during a Lag BaOmer bonfire in north London
A religious leader lit the bonfire (right of the picture) moments before the blast occurred
Hundreds of people attended the Lag BaOmer bonfire, part of an annual Jewish celebration
Witnesses said the explosion occurred at around 10pm as a religious leader lit the bonfire, in which at least one mobile phone had been placed as a warning against the dangers of smart phones to society,The Yeshiva World reported.
As the fire ignited, a fireball blasted out of the flames. It was unclear whether the handsets sparked the explosion or fuel that was being used to start the fire.
Several people were trampled as people fled the blast, witnesses said. London Ambulance attended the scene alongside the Hatzola Jewish volunteer medical service, who said they had treated ‘multiple patients’ for burns.
Source: Daily Mail – Tom Savage