Folks waiting in line at Orlando, Florida, Islands of Adventure theme park were shocked to see a tree catch fire, right beside a ride.
People waiting to get on the Harry Potter ride at the theme park narrowly missed being struck by lightning. Instead, it hit a tree just to the side of the ride. Being a particularly dry time of year, the tree burst into flames, quickly becoming engulfed.
A video snapped from the queue of the ride shows the tree burning in the middle of the day. The view through the greenhouse shows the base of the tree engulfed in flames. But, as the camera moves, it shows that the whole tree in the theme park is a blaze.
Thankfully, the tree was out of the way of the guests, and despite being on fire, posed no risk to people in the theme park. Everyone was quickly moved out of the area, and fire services sorted the situation before it spread.
Floridian Fire
It’s pretty regular for fires to break out around Florida due to trees getting struck by lightning. At this time of year, the trees and undergrowth are so dry, it barely takes a spark for them to get going. In this case, it was probably a blessing that the tree was on fire in a theme park. Here, at least, the fire could be managed and extinguished before it spread.
Florida sees a phenomenal 4,600 wildfires every year. The dry nature of the trees and undergrowth in the state makes it particularly susceptible to fire. Something as simple as a lightning strike can spark one off. Thankfully, the state is pretty used to it and prepared.
The tree fire in the theme park was nothing new, but it certainly gave the guests a shock. The footage shows them laughing and squealing as they get out of the greenhouse area beside the blaze is beside. The theme park was more than equipped to deal with the small situation, but the park goers certainly got a little extra story from their trip.