Two people have been injured on the set of The Hobbit in New Zealand. The crew members, who were working on Peter Jackson’s new movie, have suffered minor burns and have been taken to a hospital as precaution.

The incident happened in a workshop where several crew members were working on a statue. According to a spokesman one of the crew members had some burnt nostril hairs and had to be taken to the hospital as a precaution. The spokesman also mentioned that he thinks the word “incident” would be more appropriate than “explosion”, as it was just a minor incident.

The recordings for The Hobbit, prequel to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, have started in the end of May. The recordings of the movie, that will be released in two parts, have been delayed several times due to financial problems at MGM, Peter Jackson’s health and a film studio full of miniatures burning down.

Tolkien’s The Hobbit is being directed by Peter Jackson and is still expected to be released in December 2012. The movie will be starring many famous actors, such as Cate Blanchett Orlando Bloom, Stephen Fry, Martin Freeman, Ken Stott and Ian McKellen.