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IN THE NEWS

Dangerous Gas Fireplace Burns Tot

A terrible accident for a Toronto family, and all the anxious mother could do was watch in horror.. "I was about 3 feet from her when it happened," confirms Noreen Popelas. What happened was a stumble that severely injured her daughter. "She lost her balance and fell towards the fireplace, and put out her hands to break her fall." That's when her five-year-old burned her hands on the glass of a gas fireplace. "The pain was excruciating for her," says Popelas, who asked that her daughter not be named. Read more. (Read more)

 
Doctor: Keep Gas Fireplaces Off With Children At Home -- KETV 7 Omaha, Nebraska

A toddler severely burned by a gas fireplace faces a painful recovery. Aydin Mangiameli, a spunky 11-month-old, just started walking last month. It's what got the curious kid into trouble. His mother said he was trying to get himself up one night when he touched the glass of a gas fireplace that was red hot. Watch news video

Burn injuries on the rise -- Examiner.com

A recent report released by the Children’s Hospital Burn Center in Denver, CO has noticed an alarming trend in the last four years with children and gas fireplaces. The deceptive piece of glass that separates the flames from the rest of the room can reach temperatures over 500 degrees. At this temperature, a two second contact with a child’s hand could result in sever second to third degree burns. Read more.

Fireplace burn-risk warning -- The Province

When you flip the switch on your gas fireplace this winter, the folks at B.C. Children's Hospital want you to consider the potential for burns in children who touch the searing hot glass in front of the flames. Between eight and 10 kids are treated at the hospital every year for serious burns to their hands or face after touching or falling into the glass. Read more

Number of injuries from gas fireplaces increases - Video  -- KSTP TV, Minneapolis

A Burnsville mother and father are haunted by the images of their daughter's hands, which were badly burned after she fell against their gas fire place last year. Shannon and Jeremy Abbott say they'll never forget the day Myah, now 14-months old, was injured. Shannon said, "I wasn't expecting what I had seen, and it was just blisters on her hands and her screaming." The fireplace was turned off before she fell, but her hands still stuck to the glass. Read more

9NEWS Video On Fireplace Burns -- Denver

9news.com of Denver tells the story of a toddler who touched the glass on the front of grandma's fireplace while his mother sat just feet away.. In less than a second the 10-month-old boy was painfully burned. The parents had no idea that the sealed glass on a fireplace could reach temperatures of more than 400 degrees. Denver's Childrens Hospital tells the reporter that every week they see two to three children hurt like this. Every week. And the number has been growing over the last few years.

9News.com - Colorado's News Leader:  Local Hospital Sees Increase In Burns From Gas Fireplaces

Fireplace Glass Doors Burn Hazard

Did you know that the glass on glass-fronted fireplace setups gets very hot, and remains hot long after the gas jet in the fireplace is turned off? The Washington Post's parenting column explains the danger, especially to toddlers, who can get serious hand burns. Putting a traditional wire screen in front of the glass doors helps with the hazard, but parental vigilance is still required. (Posted Feb 25 2009 3:58pm)

Fireplace Dangers Lurk in the Glass

Jennifer Gore's son Tommy is one of the lucky ones. That's her view of the hand burn the then 11 1/2 month old suffered while playing at a friend's house. Tommy's is one of many incidents of serious fireplace burns to hands and arms that doctors at Children's National Medical Center have seen this winter. And Tommy, unlike many of the other children, did not need a skin graft. Read more  (Posted February 25, 2009; 7:00 AM ET)

Cozy gas fireplace? Don't let it be a burn hazard

Gas fireplaces are an important feature in many Colorado homes. They add ambiance and warmth on chilly winter nights. Unfortunately, many people don't know about a hidden danger these fireplaces may pose to children. Since 2006, the Children's Hospital Burn Center has seen a 50 percent increase in burns to hands from the glass doors on fireplaces. "We see on average two to three new patients per week (with this injury) in our outpatient burn clinic," said Angela Drelles, a burn center nurse. The problem? Many glass fireplace doors do not have protective screens. While the glass door definitely protects children from the fire itself, it doesn't necessarily protect kids from the heat of the fire. Read more (Posted 02/13/2010 01:00:00 AM MST)

INFORMATIONAL

The Dangers of Glass Fireplace Doors

MADISON - A cozy fire at this time of year poses a little-known safety threat for children, especially toddlers learning to walk. University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics has issued a warning for parents and child care providers because of the increasing number of burns from children touching glass fireplace doors.  “Glass fireplace doors are a potential source of injury that many people don’t know about,” says UW Health burn surgeon Dr. Lee Faucher. Faucher says UW Health burn treatment specialists see six to eight cases a year of children burning their hands, fingers, arms, legs or other parts of the body on glass fireplace doors. Most burns are to the palms of the hands.Dr. Faucher says most of the victims are 11 to 14 months old - kids learning to walk, but unsure on their feet. Faucher says the problem could be even more widespread because parents of the injured children may not seek treatment in a certified burn unit such as UW Hospital’s.. The unit also provides burn care for American Family Children’s Hospital. Read more

Child Fireplace Safety: Keeping Your Child Safe around Fireplace Glass Doors -- http://www.productliabilitylawblog.com/2009/06/child_fireplace_safety_keeping_1.html

Because of air pollution and other environmental concerns, most Colorado municipalities refuse to allow wood burning fireplaces for new home construction. Thus, if you want a fireplace with your new home, it will probably be a gas flame fireplace. In the early years of these gas fireplaces, access to the flames was protected by some sort of metal screen. More recently, these fireplaces have been enclosed by glass doors. Fireplaces with glass doors are becoming a source of serious burn injuries to infants and small children. In a recently published study by Desiree Jimenez and Angela Montgomery of The Children’s Hospital in Denver, the authors reported 82 children with moderate to severe hand burn injuries caused by fireplace glass doors. Five of these kids required skin grafting. Read more (Posted June 24, 2009)

Hearth FAQs

Q. Will my children get burned if they touch the fireplace/stove?
A. If they touch the glass, they will be burned. Stoves may get hot on the outside, as well as the glass. Many fireplaces now come with screens that protect you and your children from burns. Children should never, however, play around a fireplace or stove.

Last modified: 02/21/10