A 12-year-old boy begged his mother to let him die after suffering severe burns in a devastating accident during the school holidays. Hunter Jory was playing in a field in Sheffield on August 18 when another child lit a small fire using a flint. A different individual then threw a petrol can into the blaze, leaving Hunter engulfed in flames.
Hunter managed to run to a friend's house, who called his mother Kim. She rushed him to a nearby GP surgery while waiting for an ambulance. Kim said her son was in so much pain that he pleaded with her to end his suffering. 'When I got the call saying Hunter was in agony, I assumed he'd been run over. I didn't think for a minute that he'd been set on fire,' she said.
The fire took skin and tissue from Hunter's right thigh, leg, and knee, as well as hair on the right side of his head, the back of his ear, skin from his forehead, nose, lips, eyelids, and hands. 'His skin was still cooking when we got to the hospital, and he was screaming 'put me out',' Kim added. Hunter was rushed into theatre where surgeons removed and dressed the burnt skin.
Kim revealed that her son will need repeated skin grafts until he reaches adulthood because scarring tissue does not stretch. 'His face isn't the same face as before. I've explained it to Hunter, but he hasn't really processed it yet,' she said.
Kim is determined to raise awareness about the dangers of fire. She admitted feeling angry but stressed that the children involved were not to blame, adding that more education is needed to stop youngsters playing with fire. Hunter's friends have set up a fundraising page to adapt his home, as doctors fear he may struggle with stairs. His best friend Jayden will race at Skegness Raceway on August 28 to support him.
