A fireworks explosion over a church bell tower set the sky ablaze and resulted in 28 injuries during a festival in eastern Spain.

Fireworks stored in a church bell tower in the town of Elche were scheduled to go off at midnight Monday, an Elche Town Hall representative told The Press Association.

Instead, the fireworks, protected by a blanket and in a pack inside the tower, were struck by rogue fireworks that had launched from somewhere else.

That strike caused the covered fireworks to launch prematurely, sending an explosion of mini-rockets into the air and raining sparks and burning material down on people below.

The town representative said three of the 28 people injured were three fireworks operators who had to be hospitalized for serious burns. The other 25 people were treated for minor injuries.