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Fire-eater bursts into flames at high school pep rally

It's lit.

 

Miles Klee

Internet Culture

Posted on Mar 18, 2016   Updated on May 27, 2021, 1:50 am CDT

I don’t pretend to know how fire-eating works, but I have a good sense of when it hasn’t gone as planned. If the fire-eater catches fire, for instance, that probably isn’t part of the show.

Which is exactly what 2,000 kids at a high school pep rally in Florida realized when, lo and behold, a 53-year-old “professional” fire-eater burst into flames before them. In the alarm and confusion that followed—documented by one of the smartphone-equipped millennials in the scrum—the performer set the floor of the gym on fire as well.

The fire-eater, Ricky Charles—stage name “Inferno”—suffered serious injuries but is reportedly in good condition. Meanwhile, 20 others were treated for injuries, with eight hospitalized.

[Placeholder for https://www.facebook.com/DelrayBeachFireRescue/photos/a.115926978474285.12159.110084059058577/1006871269379847/?type=3&theater embed.]

Man, how is spring break gonna live up to that?

H/T KTLA | Photo via Jon Connell/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)

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*First Published: Mar 18, 2016, 6:18 pm CDT