Burning Man festival: Horrifying moment man evades security to dive into huge fire

This was the horrifying moment a man evaded security to dive into a burning effigy in front of thousands of people at the Burning Man festival in Nevada.

The reveller was pulled from the flames on Saturday night but reportedly later died from his injuries in hospital.

The burning of the 50-foot effigy is one of the highlights of the week-long festival which sees 70,000 people form a temporary city in the middle of the desert.

But crowds were stunned to watch a man dodge security and firefighters before running towards the flames and leaping into them.

The festival said in a statement: “At approximately 10.30pm Saturday evening, a male participant at the annual Burning Man event in northern Nevada broke through a safety perimeter and ran into a fire.

“Black Rock City fire personnel rescued him from the fire. The individual was treated on the scene, transported to the on-site medical facility and airlifted to a burn treatment center.”

Burning Man is an annual festival described as a “temporary metropolis dedicated to community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance”.