A gasoline container explosion resulted in serious burns for a five-year-old boy from Basarabeasca district. Gheorghe Vicol, head of the Burns Section of the Mother and Child Institute, has told IPN that the boy was playing with matches near a gasoline container, which exploded.

The boy was at home alone at that time. Neighbors saw what happened and called an ambulance. He was later transported from the Basarabeasca District Hospital to the Chisinau Mother and Child Center by the Aviasan service, with multiple burns on the legs and hands. The boy will remain with scars. The tragedy wouldn’t have happened if the child had been supervised.

Gheorghe Vicol said that in summer and autumn, the cases of burns caused by inflammable substances, suffered by children, increase in number. “The children look for something new and want to experiment with the objects around, including dangerous one left within their reach. The consequences are tragic. The burns caused by flames represent about 18% of all the cases of burn suffering among children younger than five,” stated the doctor.

Specialists warn that many accidents involving children under five occur when the parents leave the kids unsupervised. That’s why the parents are urged to ask someone to look after the children if they need to go away.

According to a study made by the REPEMOL project within the campaign “A danger-free home for your child!”, which analyzed the knowledge, attitudes and practices of those who care for children aged between 0 and 5, only 27.2% of the parents realize the risk of explosions in the house or court. According to the National Health Management Center, 2,427 children younger than five suffered traumas in Moldova last year. Of them, 51 died.