Two suffer horrific burns in Star Wars laser stunt

Two young Star Wars fans were critically ill in hospital last night after a homemade "lightsaber" blew up and showered them in burning petrol.

The 17-year-old girl and a man aged 20 were believed to have filled a fluorescent light tube with petrol before setting it alight.

However, their stunt went tragically wrong when the device exploded in their faces, setting their clothes alight and leaving them with horrific burns.

The horrific accident was revealed when firefighters were called out after reports of a blaze in woodland in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire.

When the crew arrived at the wood, the fire was out and they discovered the pair lying in agony on the ground.

Specialists said the burns were so horrific that each of the patients had only a 50 per chance of survival.