Were You Burnt at the Ottery Tar Barrell Explosion?

This has to be one of the most dangerous & ridiculous traditions nowadays.

I used to live in Ottery St Mary and the tradition was for the 'youths' to run through the village with a small flaming tar barrel in the late afternoon/early evening of November 5th. This was followed much later by adult men carrying the larger flaming barrel. The place was always full of spectators and, understandably, people used to get injured as the barrel was flung around the streets when it got too hot to handle. The debris in the streets the next morning was unbelievable and local traders were nervous about potential damage to their premises.

I suppose it's considered good local entertainment much like 'Obby Oss' day in Padstow but putting an aerosol in one of the barrels doesn't sound like a very sensible idea & is asking for trouble.