TIRUPATTUR: An 11-year-old boy succumbed to burn injuries on Sunday night, a day after he was caught in a fire accident while carrying out a science experiment, allegedly after watching a YouTube video, at his house in Solaiyur of Jolarpet.
The boy – Kavin I, a Class 6 student of a private school – sustained nearly 80% burn injuries and died while receiving treatment at the Government Kilpauk Medical College Hospital in Chennai.
According to sources, an inquisitive Kavin often carried out small-scale science experiments at home, after coming across similar videos online.
The Jolarpet police said that Kavin on Saturday took a bottle of paint thinner kept at his house to the terrace and mixed kerosene with it. The police said the use of the liquid mixture, which is flammable and highly volatile, might have caused Kavin’s clothes to accidentally catch fire.
Hearing Kavin’s screams, his parents rushed upstairs and found him engulfed in flames. His father Ilayarasu, in an attempt to rescue Kavin, poured water on the boy and, in the process, also sustained nearly 12% burn injuries.
The boy and his father were rescued by their neighbours, who admitted them to the Tirupattur government hospital. Kavin was subsequently referred to the Kilpauk medical college hospital for advanced treatment, where he, however, succumbed on Sunday night.
According to the fire and rescue services department, paints and thinners contain flammable substances that easily ignite when exposed to heat.