Kidwelly fireworks show sees children hit by rockets

A fireworks display descended into chaos when rockets flew into the crowd and hit spectators.

Rhian said her children were traumatised after they were hit by fireworks from the display at Mynyddygarreg Hall near Kidwelly, Carmarthenshire, on Tuesday night.

Another mum said the malfunction happened within three minutes, but the display was not stopped.

Organisers have been contacted for comment.

Rhian said she had just finished filming part of the display when the chaos began.

Her seven-year-old son Oliver was hit on the neck, and her other son, Charlie, 11, was hit on the ear, she said.

“They were coming towards us then going off, we didn’t know where to turn or if more were heading towards us, so we rushed back as fast as we could,” she said.

Charlie was “complaining of ear pain”, but her children escaped unscathed.

However, she added, they were all “totally traumatised” and “will never want to go and see fireworks again”.

She said she heard some parents had lost their children in the “chaos”.

Rhian said there were a lot of angry parents asking for refunds, but staff did not seem to know what was going on.

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said it received a call at 19:26 GMT on Tuesday “after fireworks had flown horizontally over a crowd” but its crews were not needed at the scene.

Alan Wall said the back of his daughter’s coat was struck by a firework spark and his partner Gemma was hit in the face.

“We saw the first one skimming across the grass and exploding in front of us,” he said.

“Then there were other ones coming. I grabbed my daughter, pulled her into my chest and crouched down because they were bouncing everywhere.

“It was extensive, the amount of fireworks that went off in the crowd. It was a mad rush to leave.”

Spectator Emyr was hit by a firework as he and his wife Danielle tried to protect their children Sofia-Mai, five, and eight-year-old Steffan.

Danielle said the display continued for about 10 minutes and no staff came to make sure people were OK.

“It did start off normal, was absolutely fine like any other display, until they started to go in all directions,” she added.

“[The children] were petrified. It was just full of screaming kids all around us.”

She said lots of families were stuck at the front with parents trying to cover their children.

She said “no one has been in touch” and that no staff were helping when people were “screaming and running”.

Danielle said her children were really scared, but luckily they had not been hurt.