Shane O’Dowd-Rutherford was only nine years old when he and a friend decided to cook up some homemade fireworks. It was the season, after all, so the duo started mixing household items they’d found under the kitchen sink. Within two minutes, the concoction (ripe with highly flammable solvents) exploded, the eruption landing on Shane’s shirt. It quickly ignited, leading to the pattern of injuries Shane sustained: burns to his neck, chest arms and face. In the short time it took Shane’s mother to duck out to help her other son uncover some toy cars buried in the family’s backyard sandbox, Shane’s life would be forever changed.
It would be nice if Shane’s story was unique, but it’s not. Dr. Marc Jeschke, Director of Sunnybrook’s Ross Tilley Burn Centre, tells me he treats hundreds of these types of injuries every year. Incredibly, people throwing igniters into campfires, reaching to flip burgers with their bare hands or lighting fireworks without even reading the instructions. The circumstances vary, but the outcomes are equally horrific: flash burns causing disfigurement, pain and often numerous surgical procedures to correct. Fortunately, Dr. Jeschke says there isn’t a lot of magic when it comes to prevention. Always supervise children, use common sense and enjoy your alcohol after the BBQing is done (I can see the bumper sticker now: don’t guzzle and grill!)
If this brief shout out from the injury prevention soapbox doesn’t do it, and you do suffer a burn, know that cold water is the way to go. Dr. Jeschke has seen it all when it comes to kitchen cupboard remedies (jam, butter, oil…) that only aggravate the injury further. In short, keep the condiments for your burgers and seek prompt medical attention.
Having walked the walk, Shane says it’s just important to be conscious whenever you’re doing something even remotely dangerous. As he learned, one second of carelessness can turn into 25 years of recovery (and still counting).
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