By Johnny Johnson
The Oklahoman
DEL CITY, Okla. — An 11-year-old boy was in critical condition Monday after he was badly burned during a backyard campfire flare-up Sunday that burned two other children.
Names of two boys, age 11 and 12, and an 8-year-old girl were not released Monday.
They all were burned after an accelerant was poured onto the campfire about 6:30 p.m. Sunday, authorities said.
A yellow garden hose and two small patches of charred clothing marked the spot outside the home in the 1900 block of Elm Drive, where the mother of the girl and the 12-year-old boy sprayed down the boys, whose clothes were on fire.
The 11-year-old boy was in critical condition at OU Medical Center with burns covering an estimated 30 percent of his body, said Del City Fire Maj. Brandon Pursell. There also were second- and third-degree burns to the boy’s chest, arms, abdomen and face.
The 12-year-old was in good condition Monday at the hospital, Pursell said.
The boy was being treated for second-degree burns to his face and third-degree burns to his hands.
The 8-year-old girl was treated and released Sunday with superficial burn wounds, Pursell said.
Neighbor Drake Steed said he was in a room in his house with the window open when he saw a flash and heard an explosion.
“The whole house shook,” Steed said. “It was a loud boom, and the whole sky lit up.”
The mother told firefighters she heard screaming and went out back to find her son and the other boy on fire, according to the report.
The boys told firefighters they used gasoline on the fire, but Pursell said investigators believe the flammable liquid was actually a lacquer thinner or paint thinner, which left strong flammable vapors.
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