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Animatronic Dragon Bursts Into Flames at Disneyland, Prompting Evacuation

Some onlookers believed it was all part of the act.

An animatronic dragon representing the Disney villain Maleficent burst into flames during a Disneyland show on Saturday night—and some onlookers believed it was all part of the act. The incident happened at the “Fantasmic!” nighttime water and fireworks show, Disneyland officials told The New York Times. Six Disney workers were treated for smoke inhalation but no one was seriously injured. The fire was snuffed soon after and was deemed accidental, Sgt. Jon McClintock, a spokesman for the Anaheim Police Department and Anaheim Fire and Rescue, told The Times Sunday—though some onlookers initially thought it was all planned. “My sister and I were talking about how it was impressive,” Tim Turensek, an accountant who was visiting from Minneapolis, told the Times. “I was like, ‘Man, they can set that head on fire and it just stays perfectly intact?’ So we were kind of amazed at Disney at first and then realized it was not part of the show.”