Moment flames tear through popular beachfront venue after ‘birthday balloons exploded’ at tourist hotspot

THIS is the horrifying moment flames rip through a beachfront diner after birthday balloons allegedly explode, torching it “in seconds”. A teenager has been hospitalised after the Chez Gado Gado restaurant in Bali transformed into a blazing inferno at 7:30pm on Sunday. Monster flames ripped through the popular tourist diner within seconds Credit: Collect Red flames burning inside the restaurant as smoke pours out of the venue Credit: Collect Tara Borelli (second from right) at her cousin’s birthday moments before the Chez Gado Gado restaurant went up in flames Credit: Collect The silver birthday balloons had been filled with flammable gas Credit: Collect Hundreds of petrified diners said they ahd just minutes to flee as the restaurant in Seminyak was decimated by the monster blaze. Shocking footage shows the diner engulfed in orange flames setting the thatched straw roof ablaze as choking smoke fills the air. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! One man can be seen flinging a tiny bucket of water over the roaring fires as terrified onlookers watch in horror. Fiery red plumes can be seen shooting off the site as thick rolls of flame and smoke roll in mushroom clouds into the air. One boy has been rushed to hospital with burns, Indonesian authorities confirmed. Tara Borelli, from Sydney, had been celebrating her cousin’s 51st birthday when the festive family occasion was plunged into chaos. “It happened right next to us”, the 30-year-old recounted. “There was a 70th birthday and they had two balloons on their table and a waitress went to light the candle on the birthday cake, but she lit it a bit too close to the balloon,” Tara alleged. Most read in The Sun “It popped then exploded. We felt the heat from the pop.” The alleged mistake spiralled into a terrifying ordeal – with diners picking up their children and running from the inferno. Skies turned red and showers of sparks flew through the skies as the horror unfolded Credit: 7NEWS The Chez Gado Gado restaurant has been reduced to a charred skeleton Credit: EPA “I just grabbed by daughter (seven) and little cousin (12) and ran straight onto the beach towards the water”, Tara said. She watched as the straw roof immediately caugt fire and said that “within minutes” the entire diner was up in flames. Her family followed – except for her cousin who dived back into the fiery depths to help a man in a wheelchair. “Everyone just started running. People were screaming and kids were crying”, Tara told Aussie news outlet News.au. Another diner, from Perth, said that the ordeal was “absolutely terrifying”. She had been waiting for food at her table when “a balloon exploded and literally within seconds the whole place was on fire”, she claimed. “We just ran. Managed to get out through a back door and honestly, a few seconds longer and I don’t even want to think about what could have happened. “Still shaking writing this. The restaurant was packed and I’m just praying everyone managed to get out safely. Absolutely terrifying.” A probe is underway to investigate the cause of the fire. The restauarant has been in operation for more than 30 years and was popular with holidaymakers in Bali. Comment now