Young men have hurled fireballs at one another in the streets of El Salvador as part of a hundred-year old tradition.

Local residents in the town of Nejapa gather every year on August 31 and throw fiery, gasoline-soaked rags in honour of a huge volcanic eruption in 1658, Reuters reports.

‘We commemorate the eruption of San Salvador volcano in 1658 which wiped out the population of Nejapa, moving (the town) from (the areas of) ‘El Jabali’ or ‘El Playon’ to the current location. Historic records date (the celebration) from 1922 but the town’s elderly say it (celebration) has reached its centenary,’ organiser for the celebrations, Wilfredo Hernandez, told Reuters.

According to locals, the fireballs are used because the hot lava that flowed from the volcano was actually the local Christian Saint Jeronimo fighting the devil with balls of fire.

The tradition has become a major tourist attraction for the small town in recent years and despite the obvious dangers of the event, few serious injuries have been recorded.

Source: Sky News