Khaberni -19 people were injured in a fireworks accident during the "Rheinkirmes" folk festival in the city of Düsseldorf, Germany.
A police spokesperson said on Friday/Saturday night that the injured include at least one child, noting that four of them have serious injuries.
According to reports, one of the fireworks exploded at an extremely low altitude during a major display last Friday evening for unknown reasons. The police believe it was an accidental incident.
The event organizers ended the festivities early after the incident, around 10:45 PM. The festival was originally supposed to stay open until the early morning hours.
The organizers expressed their deep regret about the accident in a statement.
A festival spokesperson explained that it is now necessary "to review whether the tradition of the fireworks display at the festival will continue next year".
The fire brigade and rescue services dispatched about 80 personnel to the site of the incident. The operation took about two hours. The last injured person was transported to the hospital about one hour after the incident, according to the fire department. As per a festival spokesperson, only a few of the injured were taken to hospitals.
The festival started a week ago and continues until tomorrow, Sunday.
The organizers created a buzz by announcing the largest drone show in Germany, which lasted about 20 minutes accompanied by music, displaying giant sculptures in the sky made up of a thousand drones with their small lights on the first Saturday of the festival, and again last Friday evening, immediately followed by the traditional fireworks display.
At the Rheinkirmes festival, the "St. Sebastianus" shooting club - which dates back more than 700 years - celebrates the feast day of its patron saint, Saint Apollinaris on July 23.
Over the ten days of the festival, more than 300 exhibitors display their games and tents on an area of about 165,000 square meters on the left bank of the Rhine, directly opposite the old quarter of Düsseldorf.
