Explosion Critically Injures 1 At Pumpkin Flinging Contest

BRIDGEVILLE, Del. (AP) - Delaware State Police say one person has been critically injured after an apparatus used to launch pumpkins into the air exploded.

The incident occurred Sunday at the Punkin Chunkin Contest in Bridgeville. The town is about 40 miles south of Dover.

Contestants launch pumpkins with a variety of homemade contraptions. The event had been cancelled for the past two years because of problems finding insurance.

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In 2014, a Sussex County farmer had stopped making his property available for the contest because a volunteer who was injured in an ATV accident filed a lawsuit. But organizers for the 2016 contest said an insurance policy was in place to protect the landowner.

More than 100 teams had signed up to compete this year.

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