Horror as 9-year-old boy is left in unbearable pain after burning 70 percent of his body in viral ‘fire challenge’

A nine-year-old boy in New Orleans suffered burns to 70 per cent of his body after taking part in a social media “fire challenge”, officials said. Fire Chief Roman Nelson and Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick are using the case to warn children and parents about the potentially fatal risks of the stunt.

The challenge involves dousing oneself in a flammable substance, setting it alight and trying to extinguish the flames quickly. Officials urged parents to discuss online stunts with their children, while noting that similar incidents have occurred before: in 2018, a 12-year-old girl in Detroit was burned over 49 per cent of her body, and a 2014 case involved a teenager whose mother was accused of filming him.