Devon's Village of Fire | Nomad Stories | World Nomads

Every November 5, in the Devon village of Ottery St. Mary, locals carry flaming tar barrels on their backs through the streets in an event that attracts thousands of spectators. Each of the village's 17 pubs sponsors a barrel which are soaked in tar in the weeks running up to the event. Starting in the afternoon, there are women's and boys' barrels carried, but as night falls, the barrels get heavier, until midnight when they weigh around 200lbs (90kg). According to tradition, generations of the same family carry the burning barrels, in a bonding custom that goes back hundreds of years.
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