A TEENAGER suffered burns to 30 per cent of her body when a bonfire exploded during a party near the Victorian border early this morning.
The 17-year-old girl, believed to be from NSW, was airlifted over 300km to Melbourne’s Alfred Hospital after sustaining severe burns to her face, chest, arms, legs in the blaze and potential damage to her airways in the out-of-control fireball.
The youth had been attending the house party in Thurgoona, about 9km north-east of the state’s Victorian border, when the backyard bonfire erupted around 2.15am.
A further three youths — two boys, 17, and another girl, 16 — were also rushed to the Albury Base hospital where they were treated for minor burns.
NSW Fire Brigade Acting Superintendent John Turner said an aerosol can retrieved from debris had been determined as the cause of the explosion.
“We can’t confirm whether the aerosol can was in the bonfire before it ignited or whether it was thrown in, but we know the explosion was the result of the pressured can in the fire,” Acting Superintendent Turner said.
“I’m hoping that the can was unfortunately misplaced there before the time that the bonfire was put together… I truly hope people aren’t that irresponsible (to throw it in),” he said.
“It’s very dangerous…anything exploding like that could cause severe harm or even death. They’ve obviously suffered the consequences but they’re lucky there weren’t more people who were injured.”
Emergency services including NSW Police and NSW Ambulance officers swooped on the Tabletop Rd property after the alarm was raised, while NSW Fire and Rescue attended the site and managed to doused the blaze.
Ambulance Victoria spokesman Paul Bentley said party-goers had placed the teenage girl in a shower before NSW paramedics arrived at the scene and also transported her to the Albury Base hospital, about 10 minutes from the scene.
“At about 3.35am we sent an air ambulance from Essendon to Albury to bring the teenage girl here,” he said.
“When she arrived at Essendon she was then taken by road to the Alfred Hospital.”
Mr Bentley said the girl had been transferred to Melbourne because of the “serious nature of her burns”, with the Alfred Hospital specialising in burns treatment.
Alfred Hospital spokesman Brendan Carroll said the girl arrived around 9am this morning where she has remained in a serious but stable condition.
The girl’s injuries are not believed to be life threatening.
A crime scene has been established at the property as Albury Forensic Services group personnel continue to probe the contents of the fire.
It is not yet known whether the occupiers of the property had obtained a permit to conduct the bonfire.
