ROME- Two people acting as soldiers were killed and five were injured on Saturday when a rifle exploded during a highway robbery re-enactment in a rural area of Potenza, south Italy.

 The two men, who were impersonating soldiers, were killed by the splinters of the rifle from the explosion, one dying immediately and the other in hospital. Another man has also had to have his forearm amputated after shrapnel pierced the sleeve of his uniform. He remains in hospital in the surgical emergency unit, with a prognosis of 30 days.

 A five year-old child was also injured in the incident by a piece of shrapnel that injured a lung, the diaphragm and the liver. The child was operated on immediately upon arrival at the hospital and remains in intensive care. Another of the injured is a 37 year-old woman who suffers a fracture in her right arm. The remaining two bear minor injuries and were discharged from hospital by the evening.

 The mayor of Potenza, Dario De Luca, visited the injured in the San Carlo hospital in the city where they were admitted after the accident.

 Police forces are conducting an investigation to discover what exactly occurred on the fateful evening in the Dragonara district.

 The main focus of the investigation is the exploding rifle which was one specially designed for use in film.  In the scene, six men impersonating soldiers were supposed to shoot a female bandit. Unfortunately the scene became a case of life imitating art, leading to the deaths of two people.