Eight-year-old dies after being boiled alive

[nick]

Warning: this story is really horrible

An eight-year-old boy died on Thursday after being boiled alive in a geothermal hotpool in New Zealand.

http://i.telegraph.co.uk/telegraph/multimedia/archive/01794/hotpool_1794756c.jpg

The boy suffered severe scalding to his entire body when he fell or jumped into a 212F (100C) pool in the North Island tourist resort of Rotorua.

Witnesses heard him screaming in agony and saw his skin peeling off during the Boxing Day incident.

He was airlifted by helicopter to the intensive care unit at Middlemore Hospital in Auckland.

The boy, who was of Pacific Island heritage, was with his family visiting Rotorua's Kuirau Park, a geothermal hot spot pockmarked by boiling pools of water and natural cauldrons of bubbling mud.

Fences surround the geothermal features and there are warning signs in the council-run public park.

A hospital spokesman said the boy's family were with him when he died.

Anna Kare, a Frenchwoman who runs a café in the city, said she was walking through the park with her mother-in-law and two daughters when she heard screaming.

She saw a teenager, whom she assumed to be the boy's brother, running through the park with the child on his back.

"At first I thought they were just playing until I heard what he was saying," Mrs Kare said.

"There was screaming and yelling. It was just horrible.

"The boy was yelling 'my hands, my hands', and then I saw that all the skin was peeled off his hands."

Garry Page, Rotorua District Council parks and recreation manager, said: "Apparently this boy had actually climbed up on to the fence and jumped into the pool.

"There's not a lot we can do to stop that if someone is that determined to get over the fence."

Mr Page said the incident was under investigation.

Rotorua, which lies at the heart of a geothermal plateau, attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists each year to its geysers and related natural wonders.

New Zealand is on the Pacific Ring of Fire, notorious for its volcanic and seismic activity.


Source (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/newzealand/8232091/Eight-year-old-dies-after-being-boiled-alive.html)

[Mzor203]

Y'know, I'll probably get flamed for this, but hey. It's life.

This is just Darwin at work again, sadly. The fact that the kid immersed himself in the pool and was in it long enough to boil himself to pieces is just insane. Who jumps into water like that when there's steam rising from it, it's behind a fricken fence, there's warning signs. He was 8 years old, there's really no reason for him not to be able to at least stop and read.

There's a reason this doesn't happen very often. What's that? You have to be an idiot to do it. This kid was an idiot.

I feel sorry for the family though, it's probably not a nice thing seeing your kid getting roasted alive.

[Lmaodude]

That's crazy and sad! :| Poor kid..

[Magus]

I feel sorry for the kid. But with all seriousness, it's the parent's fault. It's their role to keep their eyes on their family. Shame on you, parents.

[Lmaodude]

I feel sorry for the kid. But with all seriousness, it's the parent's fault. It's their role to keep their eyes on their family. Shame on you, parents.

I agree, i'd never forgive myself if i could've stopped that from happening to my kid.

[Continuum]

The boy suffered severe scalding to his entire body when he fell or jumped into a 212F (100C) pool in the North Island tourist resort of Rotorua.


Ugh. For most part, I'm curious why this is a tourist attraction. This is pretty terrible, y'all.

[jcfla9]

Wow...That's really sad.

[Sith Lord 13]

This... this is just sad. I feel bad for the kid. Parents should have kept a closer eye on him.

[INACTIVE_USER]

WOW!! I wouldn't rush to the conclusion that it was the parent's fault as we don't know the exact story

[Jess]

that's so sad :(

[Charleigh]

thats horrific. the pain that poor child must of went through must of been horrific. the parents failed their duty to be responsible. the poor kid. poor poor kid.
hes in a better place now, what a shame.

[Sogeking]

That was very unfortunate. :( The parents should have kept a closer eye on him.

[Amnesiac]

An unfortunate event, yes, but I wouldn't jump to conclusions and blame the parents.

[Kahn]

Sad story. The child should've known the fence was there for a reason.

[Coolcar65]

Well maybe its his fault. Its really. Sad story but the fence was their for a reason. He just shouldnt have crossed it.

[MoveAlong]

This is just Darwin at work again, sadly.

I'm glad I'm not the only one that blames natural selection for deaths!

Yes, really tragic story, but I think that the parents should have been supervising the kid, seeing as they are at a potentially dangerous place. I also think the parents could have warned the kid, and that may have caused him to evade this tragic end. I know it's obviously not all the parent's fault though, and I'm sorry they have to deal with this.

Such is life.

[Dunce]

That's awful.
I'm not going to say it was anyones fault, a kid literally got boiled alive. It doesnt really matter who's fault it was, unless of course he got thrown in, which he didnt.

[Daniel_]

Sucks to be him. Shouldn't have jumped the fence.

[nick]

Some of you guys are so cruel. Yes, the kid was stupid if he jumped or unfortunate if he fell in, but what struck me was what a horrible way to die, and how horrible for those people that were there and witnessed it. They will probably have to live with those memories, deal with them, for many years.

[Daniel_]

Some of you guys are so cruel. Yes, the kid was stupid if he jumped or unfortunate if he fell in, but what struck me was what a horrible way to die, and how horrible for those people that were there and witnessed it. They will probably have to live with those memories, deal with them, for many years.

Not cruel, just realistic. I agree that it's bad and unfortunate, however it was the kids mistake. Human error, and it's no ones fault. Nothing you can say but say "i'm so sorry" and move on.

I really don't want people to think i'm a bad person or cruel or anything like that, but it doesn't affect me, so i don't realllyyy care.. I mean yeah, I feel SORRY for them, but.. It's not gonna make me cry or lose sleep over it.

[Fiction]

It's kinda the kids fault that he went in, an 8 year old should have known better. If the parents had told the kid not to go near them, then it isn't really there fault. They would have assumed he was safe due to the fences.
It's still sad though. Especially because of all the pain he would have gone through.

[MoveAlong]

If the parents had told the kid not to go near them, then it isn't really there fault. They would have assumed he was safe due to the fences.

I hope this story teaches current and future parents that there's more to child safety than warnings and assumptions.

[Sage]

I hope this story teaches current and future parents that there's more to child safety than warnings and assumptions.

There's leashes!

[Daniel_]

I hope this story teaches current and future parents that there's more to child safety than warnings and assumptions.

It wont. Bad parents are bad parents. They don't give two shits, and half of them are just a bunch of rotten brats who didn't feel like running to the store to buy condoms.

^-- then again, thats how I was born. And my mom was irresponsible.

Come to think of it, if it wasn't for my grandmother, I would have been just like the annoying screaming parent-ignored children you see today.

[embers]

Horrible, horrible, horrible.

On a lighter note:

"There's not a lot we can do to stop that if someone is that determined to get over the fence."

It may be cruel, but this made me chuckle a bit. Nice to see one can speak so lightly over such things.

[Trevoooor]

Oh my god. What a terrible thing to happen.

My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

[Dorsum Oppel]

What a dumbass.

/thread

[Tiberius]

Seriously, an eight year old should know better. He should be put up for a Darwin Award.

[BOBBY HILL]

One less stupid kid.

[Suicune]

Dear God, that honestly is just pure horror.
I'm going to have some pretty haunting images in my head for awhile.

I'm just not going to point the finger at anybody and just say that this is just a tragedy. My thoughts go out to the family.

[Sage]

I'm just not going to point the finger.

Allow me then.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_1IG5houmW0Q/SL8tqi6EyvI/AAAAAAAAAJE/3zEfg_yyDlA/s320/simpsons_nelson_haha2.gif

[lipstick_kisses23]

that's so sad =[, poor boy