Fire in Taiwan water park injures hundreds

Taipei

Witnesses described the scene at a Taiwan water park as "hell" after a ball of fire ripped through a crowd, with authorities putting the injured at nearly 500 today, more than 200 of them seriously hurt.

Horrifying amateur video footage showed crowds of young revellers dancing in front of a stage and cheering as clouds of green and yellow powder covered them at the "colour party" yesterday night.

But their joy turned to terror when the powder suddenly erupted into flames engulfing the partygoers in an inferno as they ran screaming for their lives. 

Some were dressed only in swimwear and images from the scene show many with severe burns being tended by those who escaped.

The injury toll from the blast sharply rose today morning as officials began to track down victims who had taken themselves to the hospital or had been ferried there by others.

One male student who sustained minor injuries described the scene as "hell".

"There was blood everywhere, including in the pool where lots of the injured were soaking themselves for relief from the pain," he told reporters.

His visibly shaken girlfriend added: "I saw lots of people whose skin was gone."

Ambulances had struggled to reach the scene, and victims were carried away on rubber rings and inflatable dinghies as friends desperately tried to get them out.