7 year old, badly burnt.

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Discussion

backwoodsman

Original Poster:

2,463 posts

128 months

Friday 18th April 2014
quotequote all
I feel very sad for this child.

But have to disagree with relatives trying to blame the council, and why did the other kids have lighters?

Sorry for the wail link.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2607841/Bo...

MajorProblem

4,700 posts

163 months

Friday 18th April 2014
quotequote all
Looks like a sthole of an area, therefore I am not surprised that,

Kids robbing stuff out of work vans

Kid set on fire

Parents blame anyone but themselves and will probably want compensayshun.

Ian Geary

4,462 posts

191 months

Friday 18th April 2014
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The Daily Mail article is quite confusing:

In one part it refers to breaking into a van, but another witness saw the kids climb onto the back of a pickup - i.e. so no breaking into a van implied.

Also, the witness says his mates were chucking petrol on him (as you do..) and sparking their lighters (I of course make sure my 7 year old never leaves home without his lighter).

Later on, someone says the boy had fuel on his clothes, which somehow ignited...

Somehow? I wonder however that could have happened? I doubt they'll need Poirot for that one...


I'm sure the Council were using legit petrol cans - probably for strimmers and mowers and the like, but I am surprised they left it in the back of an open van. I'm surprised anyone would leave anything in the back of an open van unsupervised in an area like that to be honest.


Still, must be horrible for the kid's family.

Hopefully a bit of a wake up call for all who either carry, or play with petrol.


Ian

Tony2or4

1,283 posts

164 months

Friday 18th April 2014
quotequote all
Quote from the Mail report: "Another said someone handed the youngster a bucket of water, which he immediately poured over himself in a desperate attempt to put out the fire."

WTF? You see a kid on fire, and you hand him a bucket of water?

Why not just chuck the water over him yourself, and save precious seconds?

Ozzie Osmond

21,189 posts

245 months

Friday 18th April 2014
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Careful kids - you know it makes sense.....

Centurion07

10,381 posts

246 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
Tony2or4 said:
Quote from the Mail report: "Another said someone handed the youngster a bucket of water, which he immediately poured over himself in a desperate attempt to put out the fire."

WTF? You see a kid on fire, and you hand him a bucket of water?

Why not just chuck the water over him yourself, and save precious seconds?
Can't be too careful; probably afraid of getting sued for not throwing a high enough percentage on target and extinguishing the fire quickly enough. Far better to hand it to the firey kid and let him disperse the contents of the bucket appropriately since only he will know where he's hottest.

MajorProblem

4,700 posts

163 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
Saves being accused of being a peado / murderer too if you actually came into contact with the child.

Centurion07

10,381 posts

246 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
MajorProblem said:
Saves being accused of being a peado / murderer too if you actually came into contact with the child.
Dammitt. Forgot that. Probably get accused of lubing him up.

Gareth79

7,628 posts

245 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
I think they must have changed the article - there isn't anything about the kids breaking into vans, or the circumstances of how it ignited.

Speculating, if the petrol can was accessible to the children then I think the council will be found partly liable :/





TheEnd

15,370 posts

187 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
If it's a flat bed pickup, there isn't many other places to store petrol, you certainly won't put it in the cab.

The guilty parties are the one that stole the petrol and the one that poured it on someone and set it alight.

Gareth79

7,628 posts

245 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
TheEnd said:
If it's a flat bed pickup, there isn't many other places to store petrol, you certainly won't put it in the cab.

The guilty parties are the one that stole the petrol and the one that poured it on someone and set it alight.
Devil's advocate a little, but I would have expected hazardous items (bladed tools etc) to be stored in a lockable box in such a vehicle, especially if, as reported, it was being used in an area where crime is common.

s3fella

10,524 posts

186 months

Saturday 19th April 2014
quotequote all
....and mum 'came home from the shops' after it had happened. So who had she left as the responsible adult looking after her son.....the dad?

7 year olds with lighters nicking stuff from the back of pick ups. It's a different fking world, thankfully.

TheEnd

15,370 posts

187 months

Sunday 20th April 2014
quotequote all
Gareth79 said:
Devil's advocate a little, but I would have expected hazardous items (bladed tools etc) to be stored in a lockable box in such a vehicle, especially if, as reported, it was being used in an area where crime is common.
I've worked from pickups with petrol powered kit.
It's very rare you get a lockable tool box on the back, and even if there was one, there would be 101 things for someone to kill themselves with, like trying to rob a paving slab or a kerbstone etc.

You've got to let it sit that it was petrol they stole, they knew it was petrol, they knew it was flammable and still messed about with it.

Poor parenting is the main factor, not some council guy who had no other options apart from a cab full of petrol fumes.


98elise

26,366 posts

160 months

Sunday 20th April 2014
quotequote all
TheEnd said:
Gareth79 said:
Devil's advocate a little, but I would have expected hazardous items (bladed tools etc) to be stored in a lockable box in such a vehicle, especially if, as reported, it was being used in an area where crime is common.
I've worked from pickups with petrol powered kit.
It's very rare you get a lockable tool box on the back, and even if there was one, there would be 101 things for someone to kill themselves with, like trying to rob a paving slab or a kerbstone etc.

You've got to let it sit that it was petrol they stole, they knew it was petrol, they knew it was flammable and still messed about with it.

Poor parenting is the main factor, not some council guy who had no other options apart from a cab full of petrol fumes.
I agree. The petrol had to be stolen, then poured on the kid, then lit. 3 stupid things to do. Trying to blame the council for not preventing it is wrong.

Previous

1,434 posts

153 months

Monday 21st April 2014
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I don't pretend to know too much (about anything), but Im guessing petrol is stored in the bed of a pick up so as to prevent build up of vapour inside the vehicle?

Rick_1138

3,656 posts

177 months

Monday 21st April 2014
quotequote all
Previous said:
I don't pretend to know too much (about anything), but Im guessing petrol is stored in the bed of a pick up so as to prevent build up of vapour inside the vehicle?
This.

There are reams of documents on the control of fuels and its storage, which get even bigger when that is accessible to the public in some means.

Unfortunately some little sts tried to frighten a boy, it went bad and he is now scarred for life, meanwhile, Wont someone think of the children brigade will try to blame a poor council worker.

Thankfully as has been said, its a different world.

Tony2or4

1,283 posts

164 months

Tuesday 22nd April 2014
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BBC News reporting that the child has died.

ETA link here:

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&...

Edited by Tony2or4 on Tuesday 22 April 08:44

backwoodsman

Original Poster:

2,463 posts

128 months

Tuesday 22nd April 2014
quotequote all
R.I.P. young man.

anonymous-user

53 months

Tuesday 22nd April 2014
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When I was a kid we loved playing with lighters and flammable things, it was a rite of passage. If it burned, sparked, smoked or went bang it was alright with us! I haven't grown up to be a criminal thankfully and I didn't burn myself to death either.
Forgive me if my own childhood experiences are somewhat atypical but isn't it a little wrong to speak of the boy and his family so unfairly?

scenario8

6,554 posts

178 months

Tuesday 22nd April 2014
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What a terribly sad story. Hopefully somewhere amongst all the st some kids might learn a terrible lesson that clearly needs teaching.