More than 20 people injured in Ferris wheel fire in Germany

The fire started in one gondola and spread to a second on Saturday night

Police were investigating the cause of the blaze, which started in a gondola. Photograph: Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP
Police were investigating the cause of the blaze, which started in a gondola. Photograph: Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP

At least 23 people were injured when two gondolas on a Ferris wheel caught fire at a music festival in Germany, the dpa news agency has reported.

The fire at the site near Leipzig, in the east of the country, started in one gondola and spread to a second on Saturday night, police said.

Four people suffered burn injuries and one suffered injuries from a fall. Others, including first responders and at least four police officers, were being examined in hospital for possible smoke inhalation, the news agency dpa reported.

The operator of the Ferris wheel told dpa that no passengers had been sitting in the gondola in which the fire started. Photograph: Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP
The operator of the Ferris wheel told dpa that no passengers had been sitting in the gondola in which the fire started. Photograph: Heiko Rebsch/dpa via AP

The incident happened at the Highfield Festival at Stoermthaler Lake.

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Police were continuing to investigate the cause of the fire, and were unable to provide concrete information about the condition of the people injured.

The exact number of casualties had also not been determined. The operator of the Ferris wheel told dpa that no passengers had been sitting in the gondola in which the fire started. - AP