A snowball fight in the eastern German city of Leipzig escalated into a full-scale riot in which several cars and a supermarket were damaged, two police officers were hurt and a glass recycling container was set on fire, police said.

It all started harmlessly when 30 people started pelting each other with snowballs. The crowd of combatants soon grew to 200 and the winter fun turned mischievous when they began targeting passing cars -- especially luxury vehicles -- as well as buses and trams.

"The group didn't just hold up cars and pelt them with snow but also hurled snowballs at many passing cars and against the windows of a supermarket," Leipzig police said in a statement. "The necessary police forces were available very quickly and were deployed."

The police officers who rushed to the scene were met with a hail of snowballs, and some people hurled bottles at them. Buses were redirected and two officers were slightly injured when police tried to stop the fight. The windows of several shops were shattered and neighbors managed to put out a fire in a large recycling container which the rioters had pushed into the street.