The cause of the accident is still unknown. At the beginning around 9:00 p.m. one Ferris wheel gondola caught fire and then the fire spread to the second. Both of them were completely destroyed by the flames.
Festival visitor Guid from Cologne said that the wheel suddenly started to spin faster. The burning gondolas were at the very top.
About 30 minutes after the fire started, a representative of the fire department told dpa that the situation was under control.
According to Skynews, 18 people are currently being treated in hospital.
Festival organizers reported that four people were injured in the fire. Another person was injured after falling from the Ferris wheel.
According to local media, four police officers were among the injured.
The fire broke out in the Ferris wheel while German rapper Ski Aggu was performing, and he later took to Instagram to say he was “moved and shocked” by what had happened.
And shared the message: “Absolutely stunned and shocked by the ferris wheel fire during my performance at Highfield. I was only told in my ear that under no circumstances should I stop the show, (..) so as not to cause a mass panic.
My priority was to keep the situation from escalating further, and luckily it worked. Thank you for staying so calm and possibly preventing something worse.”
2024-08-18 20:17:58