Schoolboys burned in cigarette horror
7:44am Thursday 9th July 2009 in Your Town
TWO schoolboys were engulfed in flames when one of them accidentally threw a cigarette butt at a petrol can.
The Little Lever High pupils, aged 13 and 14, were out of school for lunch when the accident happened.
They managed to put the flames out before residents of Fearneyside, Little Lever, where the accident happened, ran to help.
The boys suffered burns and were taken to hospital by ambulance at around 1.30pm yesterday.
Witness Amrat Kanji, who owns nearby Costcutter in Church Street, saw one of the boys on fire from the shop window.
He said: “I heard a bang and looked out of the window and I could see a boy on fire.
“It was really dramatic. The flames were on his legs and he was desperately trying to put them out with his hands and he was rolling on the ground.
“I immediately ran to get some water to help but when I got outside the fire was out. He was in shock and some neighbours took him in and called an ambulance.
“It appeared that he had been smoking and dropped the cigarette, and there was a petrol can on the floor which set alight.”
An ambulance service spokesman confirmed that two boys were taken to hospital to be treated for burns.
The 13-year-old is said to have burns to his face, and the 14-year-old suffered burns to his legs.
Headteacher of Little Lever School, Philip Hewitt, said: “The two students had lunchtime passes to go home for lunch and had parental permission to be out of school.
“In such cases pupils are the responsibility of the parents. The two pupils should have been going home for lunch when this incident happened.”
