"A burning rope and a grass skirt may be a dangerous combination for the average guy, but they were just part of the act for one African acrobat... until one night in 1998. While performing with Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in New York City, Jacques Mbembo's grass skirt caught fire. True to the saying that the show must go on, the other members of the troupe carried on while a flaming Mbembo rolled around on the ground. When he couldn't extinguish the fire, he ran from the ring. Mbembo was treated for second- and third-degree burns. The grass skirt, sadly, could not be saved."
Sources
Stuff, October 2001
