Burns, scalds and fire-related injuries
How to prevent and treat burns and scalds.
Burns and scalds are painful and severe ones can result in permanent disability. They often happen at home, and young children are particularly at risk because their skin is thinner than adult skin.
The good news is that children can be protected from these injuries by making some simple changes in your home.
Children and burns
Children suffer burns most often when near open fire for warmth, playing with matches, candles, sparklers, fireworks or inserting items into electrical outlets.
Children and scalds
Scalds happen when children come into contact with hot liquids, such as when tea or coffee falls on them or the bath/tap water is too hot. Scalds can also be caused by moist heat and hot vapours such as steam.
Did you know?
More than 90% of burns and scalds happen in the kitchen to children under 5 years old.
Safety checklist
Take these steps to help protect your child from burns and scalds.
- Never leave hot cups or pots of tea, water, or other hot liquids where your child can reach them.
- Make sure to store lighters and matches well out of your child’s reach and ensure they are put away after use. Get rid of non-child resistant lighters and only buy and use new lighters that meet child resistant standards.
- Don’t leave burning cigarettes or candles unattended. Never smoke in bed or when reclining late at night on a sofa. Keep matches and lighters out of your child’s reach, and explain to them that these products are dangerous. Ideally, don’t smoke inside the house – houses with smokers in them have a higher incidence of fatal fires.
- Keep your child well away from stoves, grills, barbecues and fireplaces. Use a fireplace screen for an open fireplace and surround a woodstove with an “ember-safe” zone, removing items that could catch fire through a stray ember. Children should be supervised by adults around such fires and be mindful of any loose clothing like scarves that could also be a fire risk.
- Never allow your child to handle fireworks. Never give sparklers to children under 5 years of age and supervise older ones – teaching them not to use sparklers indoors where there is a risk of causing fires and how to hold them at arm’s length.
- Do not expose your child to the sun for long periods of time, especially during the hottest periods of the day. If they are exposed to the sun, ensure that they wear a sun hat and clothing that covers the skin or sun protection cream with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30.
- Switch heavily loaded or multi-pronged electronic adapters off or unplug them when not in use. This helps prevent the spread of a fire. Do not overload electric sockets.
- Keep electric portable heaters away from furniture and curtains. Position them where they cannot be knocked over. Do not place portable halogen lamps in children’s bedrooms or near flammable materials such as curtains. Do not use electric items such as lamps or nightlights that are broken or have faulty cords.
Protection using smoke alarms
Install smoke alarms in the home on every level, ideally near all sleeping areas. Purchase smoke alarms which also test carbon monoxide levels and change smoke alarm batteries on a specific day every year, so that it is not forgotten. Test the batteries regularly by pressing down on and holding the test button on the alarm.
Kitchen safety
The kitchen is one of the most dangerous places in the home for burns and scalds. Children under 5 years are especially at risk as they start to explore and assert their independence by trying new things without their parents.
Keep these safety tips in mind to help keep your children safe in the kitchen:
- Use the rear burners on the stove when cooking, especially when boiling.
- Turn pot handles in toward the middle of the cooker, so children don’t knock into them or reach for them.
- Ensure the wires on electric kettles do not hang over the edge of the counter.
- Avoid using tablecloths that can be pulled off from kitchen tables if there are young children in the home.
- Keep hot objects, foods and liquids away from table and counter edges.
- Never carry children and hot foods or liquids at the same time.
- Before moving a hot item like a pot of boiling water, be sure that there are no obstacles, including a child, between you and your intended destination.
What to do in a fire emergency
If a fire starts in the home:
DO
✅ Get everyone out as quickly as possible.
✅ Always crawl low under the smoke and try to keep your mouth covered.
✅ Stay well away from the burning building.
✅ Have one person call the fire rescue services.
DON’T
❌ Remain inside a burning building.
❌ Stand up in a fire.
❌ Go back into a burning building for any reason after you are out.
Teach children how to prevent and respond to a fire
- Teach your child how to “drop and roll” to put out a fire on clothing.
- Discuss a plan for escaping your home in the event of a fire.
- Explain that it is safest to crawl or run below levels of smoke, so they can breathe and see more easily.
- Teach your child that in the event of a fire, they should test a door for heat before opening it. If the door is already hot, then it should not be opened and they should look for another exit.
- Learn the local emergency services telephone number with your child to call in the event of a fire, and post it at home in a highly visible area.
- Check if your child’s school has a fire safety programme and, if there isn't one, encourage them to put one in place and practice it.
Preventing tap water scalds
Tap water scald injuries are the second most common cause of serious burn injuries for children of all ages. Here are some ways you can help prevent them:
- Teach your child to first turn on the cold water, then add the hot water slowly and to turn off the hot water first.
- Ensure that your water heater is set no higher than 50°C/ 122°F maximum. If you cannot change the heater´s temperature, install a thermostatic mixing valve if possible (this reduces the temperature of water exiting the tap). Inform your building owner or building manager of their responsibility to manage the water heater temperature.
- Always run an open hand through the water or use a bath thermometer to check its temperature before introducing your child to the bath. A temperature of 37-38°C / 98.6-100.4°F – body temperature – is ideal.
Never leave a young child unattended in the bath, especially when the water is running, to prevent a burn or drowning.
Did you know?
What feels warm to an adult might be painfully hot to a child as their skin is thinner.
First aid for burns and scalds
If you or a family member has a burn or scald, follow these steps on how to treat it. Taking a basic first aid course is highly recommended and can help you be prepared for dealing with such emergencies.
- Reduce the heat of a burned or scalded area by immersing the affected spot in cold water, or by holding it under gentle cold running tap water for at least 20 minutes.
- Do not apply lotions, ointments or creams.
- Cover any small blisters with a loose bandage or gauze and tape.
- If burns are on the face, hands, or genitals, or if they are anything more than a small burn or scald (if the burn looks deep – the skin may be white or brown and dry), see a doctor or go to the hospital or your nearest medical centre.
- If burns are covering one tenth of the body or more, do not use cold compresses. While you are waiting for the ambulance to arrive, cover the person affected with a clean sheet or a blanket to prevent hypothermia until help arrives.
