IT was the worst of days for a German backpacker couple but the best of birthdays for a local nine-year-old last weekend when a mishap caused a minivan to catch fire at South Beach.

The Herald understands one of the backpackers was filling a can with fuel when some spilled and shorted out the van’s fridge. The spark ignited the fuel and in moments the van was engulfed. The young man suffered burns to his lower legs in the incident and was treated by an ambulance.

Guests at the nine-year-old’s nearby birthday party on the beach couldn’t believe their eyes when fire engines, a police car and the ambulance rocketed up with lights and sirens blazing.

To complete the kids’ fantasy, firies whipped out their hoses and soon had the blaze out—preventing a gas bottle explosion (“aaww!”). But the van was a right-off and, several days later its charred remains were still sitting forlornly in the car park.

by STEVE GRANT