AROUND 5.15pm on Sunday 6th May, at Corlette, a family enjoying an end of weekend get together ended in an unimaginable way.

What appears to have been a Fire Pit explosion has left a young male with severe burns.

A witness told News Of The Area he was looking in the direction of the property when he saw a huge fireball come up from the outdoor area.

“I saw a boy running to the water on fire and screaming.”

There was a group of teenage boys and others at the Reserve who leapt into action, with one calling 000, and others getting ice packs and desperately trying to assist.

Unfortunately, the ambulance drove past the car park where the incident happened and a quick-thinking teenager stopped a driver and asked if he could follow the ambulance and redirect it to the correct area.

Within minutes the area was flooded with emergency services and the young man was carried from the water by friends, shaking, clearly suffering severe burns and appearing to be in shock.

The Westpac Rescue Helicopter was deployed to transfer the male to a Sydney hospital.

Ambulance paramedics attended and treated five people at the scene.

A 16-year-old boy suffered burns to his face, arms and torso. A man and a woman, both in their 40s, were treated for burns to their legs and torso.

All three were flown by rescue helicopter to Royal North Shore Hospital.

The 16-year-old boy is reportedly in a critical condition while the man and woman are in a serious but stable condition.

Two others, a man and woman in their 40s, were also treated at the scene for burns to their face and torso and were taken to John Hunter Hospital in a stable condition.

Officers from Port Stephens / Hunter Police District attended and established a crime scene.

Initial investigations suggest an explosion occurred after a flammable liquid was poured onto a fire pit on a patio.

Police are investigating.

 

By Mandy ELLIS