Burn Severity

Published on: October 6, 2011

A Victim of Third Degree Burns Gets Support That Gives Her Hope–And Then She Gives Other Burn Victims Hope Too

An article back in July in the midwestern newspaper The Columbia Missourian told the heartwarming story of one woman coming to the aid of another woman who was the victim of third degree burns. This story also has lessons for anyone who kmnows someone who suffers severe burns.

Larisa Rudelson never knew Albina Lewis until she went to visit her in the burn unit at University Hospital in Columbia, MO. Both women are originally from Russia and now live in Columbia, so Rudelson understands that being away from one’s home can be very lonely, especially in such a situation that Lewis found herself in.

On February 23, Lewis’ apartment caught fire, and she could not escape in time to avoid being badly injured by severe burns. Her arms, hands, ears and one of her legs were damaged, but fortunately her face did not receive burns as serious as those on her extremities. These burn injuries kept her in University Hospital for more than four months, and recently she was moved to the St. John’s Mercy Rehabilitation Hospital in St. Louis.

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Published on: September 29, 2011

Burn Camps Provide Support for Burn Victims That Lasts a Lifetime

By Larry Kramer

Over this past summer in Kalamazoo, Michigan, a celebration for guests at the Great Lakes Burn Camp showed the huge amount of camaraderie shared by victims of severe burns and their families. This was the 17th annual camp, which lasts six days and is set alongside a beautiful lake.

Mike Longenecker, camp director and one of about 90 staff members and counselors overseeing this year’s 52 campers, said that it is very moving to see the joy this burn camp gives so many kids. “You’ve got to remember that these are kids with burn (scars) and they’re at an age where peers put image and looks under a microscope,” he said. “Burn camp gives these kids a week where they can look any way they want without having to worry [about exposing their scars], and be themselves.” Even with a skin graft to repair damaged skin, burn victims rarely look the same as before they were burned, so the psychological effects of burns are almost as serious as the physical effects.

Longenecker said he’s missed wedding anniversaries and his wife’s birthdays to run the burn camp, but he adds that she knew when they married that the annual camp visit means so much to him.

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Published on: September 28, 2011

Abandoned Homes Pose Risks for Fires and Severe Burns

By Larry Kramer

One weekday last month in Portland, Oregon, a boarded-up, vacant home burned down in the southeast section of town. Firefighters responded to the home just before 4 p.m. on a Monday to find the house, located at the end of a road, in flames. To minimize the risk of injury, the firefighters went on the defensive and were able to take control of the flames within 10 minutes, said the fire & rescue battalion chief.

Neighbors told firefighters there had been an increase in transient activity at this home and at another abandoned home nearby. Authorities have not yet determined the cause of the fire, but estimated that the house suffered about $10,000 in damage.

By itself, this incident is not much news to report on. But consider this: It’s just the latest in a string of fires in abandoned homes, not just in the Portland area but nationwide as well. For instance, there were four fires in abandoned homes in just two months in Flint, Michigan–all on the same block. And with the number of home foreclosures sure to be high for the foreseeable future, these types of fires are not going to lessen unless precautions are taken by those responsible for the house.

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Published on: September 22, 2011

A Burn Victim Now Helps Others Overcome Their Severe Burns

By Larry Kramer

There was a terrific article written for the Associated Press this past week about burn survivors and their path to living normally again. Here is part of that article:

Three dozen hotel housekeepers are focused on 62-year-old Sharon Everett. She’s helping lead sensitivity training at the Hyatt Regency Cincinnati in advance of the Phoenix Society’s annual World Burn Congress held each year in late September. It will be hosted by Shriners Hospital for Children – Cincinnati, and is being held in this city for the first time.

She’s come to prepare the hotel staff for a conference that will draw hundreds of burn survivors from around the country, as well as family members, burn care professionals and firefighters. She also will tell her story.

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Published on: September 20, 2011

Man Suffers Third Degree Burns After Dust Explostion in Factory

By Larry Kramer

On September 13, 2011, a 46-year-old man working at an alloy plant in Ottawa, Canada, was rushed to a hospital with second degree burns and third degree burns over 30 percent of his body, after being caught in a dust explosion and fire.

Local firefighters evacuated a warehouse at Masterloy Products Co. following an explosion that occurred in the plant’s dust collection unit, near a door. A burnt-out forklift was located next to the door at the time of the first explosion, and could have been the source of a second explosion. While a hazardous materials unit was dispatched to the blaze, no toxins were found at the site, which is fortunate for other workers who possibly were exposed to smoke inhalation.

The injured worker suffered second degree burns on his torso and third degree burns on his legs and back, said a paramedic team spokeswoman. He was taken to the trauma unit at The Ottawa Hospital, where his condition was listed as serious. The man was scheduled to be transported to a burn unit shortly thereafter. The paramedic spokesman added that the man may have also suffered a blast injury, which could have caused internal injuries to the man’s organs.

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Published on: September 16, 2011

Fire Safety Education and Fundraising Helps Kids Who Suffered Severe Burns, and Prevents Future Burns

By Larry Kramer

In Mountain View, CA, a year of fund-raising led recently to the moment where a check was presented to the Alisa Ann Ruch Burn Foundation (AARBF), during the annual Peninsula Firefighters Burn Relay.

“This is a major support for us, besides the work of the volunteers and their coming to the Champ Camp,” said Sarah Burton, director of programs for the foundation. Champ Camp is one of many residential burn camps nationwide that help kids ages five to 16 who have suffered severe burns. “It goes beyond the monetary donation,” she added. “The support of the Mountain View Fire Department through money and time has been phenomenal.”

Members of MVFD’s Engine 2 and the MV Fire Associates gathered on August 18 to present checks totaling $13,600 to the AARBF. According to a department spokesperson, the funds are raised from the annual MVFD pancake breakfast and through individual donations.

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Published on: September 13, 2011

A September 11 Survivor Uses a Positive Attitude to Regain His Health and Life

By Larry Kramer

Over the past month, there have been so many stories about people who died in the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. But here is a story that appeared in the New York Daily News recently that is an excellent example of a survivor who is getting on with his life, and all burn victims can learn from him as they fight to get through their physical and psychological injuries.

Tax lawyer Harry Waizer was ready to get to work when he took the elevator up to his World Trade Center office just before 8:46 a.m. on September 11, 2001. Harry was 50 years old at the time, and the father of three children. If he had been just two minutes later to work that day, he would have been able to go home that night and tell his family how he escaped. Instead, he became a victim of severe burns that affect him 10 years later, and which will affect him his whole life.

Harry managed to get out of the building a few minutes after the first plane struck his building, but he was severely injured by fire across his entire body. When the plane hit the top of the building, the elevator he was riding in suddenly went into a freefall and burst into flames–not once, but twice.

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Published on: September 9, 2011

Lawsuit Filed for Severe Burns Suffered from Exploding Gas Can

By Larry Kramer

A lawsuit has been filed by the parents of a Texas teenager who suffered severe burns that were allegedly caused by a defective gas container.

The lawsuit was filed by Kenneth and Pam Crouch on behalf of their daughter, Brooke Crouch, on July 29 in the Eastern District of Texas, against Blitz U.S.A. Inc.

According to the complaint, a friend of Brooke attempted to reignite a campfire by pouring gasoline on it from a Blitz gas can. When the vapors outside the can ignited, it caused the can to explode, causing Brooke to suffer third-degree burns.

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Published on: September 2, 2011

Families Must Be Proactive to Keep Relatives Safe from Nursing Home Fires

By Larry Kramer

On August 5 in a small Ohio town, a 64-year-old woman died after a fire started in her apartment within an 11-story senior apartment complex.

The woman lived in a seventh-floor apartment, where investigators believe the fire originated from a candle in the living room. Firefighter responded at 10:38 p.m. after the building’s fire alarm went off. When engines arrived, there was smoke visibly coming from the seventh floor. The fire was contained to the woman’s apartment and was knocked down quickly. Firefighters found the unconscious woman in the apartment and carried her down a ladder, witnesses said. “It’s very tragic. The guys are pretty broken up about it,” said the fire department’s chief.

An autopsy determined that the woman died of smoke inhalation. What’s more, numerous other residents of the senior complex were treated at the scene for smoke inhalation, with a few taken to a hospital. The American Red Cross found shelter for up to 30 other seventh-floor residents displaced by the fire. But many stayed with relatives instead.

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Published on: August 31, 2011

The Sun Can Cause Severe Burns Even in Late Summer, So Take Precautions

By Larry Kramer

Here’s a story that provides more than one lesson in why you need to protect yourself with the best sunblock to avoid severe burns as you enjoy the late-summer sun.

In Texas, a man was hospitalized with second-degree burns when he fell asleep while outside in the sun without his shirt on. Police say it is likely that the man was intoxicated by alcohol or another substance, which is why the pain from his sunburn did not wake him up. And when he did finally wake up, his pain was so severe that he jumped into the lake next to the pier he was sunbathing on–and then had to be rescued!

Police officers were initially called by someone who saw the burning man on the pier, but by the time police arrived the man had jumped into the water. The police notified the local EMS/ambulance service, and that team successfully pulled the victim from the water. But they immediately noticed the severity of the victim’s burns, which included blisters all over his body from the 100-degree heat.

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