A schoolgirl has been left with a burn and blisters after a can of deodorant exploded and set her bedroom on fire.
Deja Kelly was sitting on her bed next to a can of deodorant last night when it suddenly exploded next to her and set her bedding on fire. Her mum, Jacqueline, was downstairs when she heard a massive bang she first thought was a wardrobe falling over.
When the 39-year-old saw that flames had erupted in the teen's bedroom, she ran for towels, drenched them in water and flung them on the flames to put them out. Luckily, the banking customer assistant managed to put the fire out and her daughter walked away with slight burns on her leg.
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Since the fire, the mum-of-two has put all aerosols in the house in a bag and left them outside until she can safely dispose of them in case the same happens again. She now wants to raise awareness around the danger of using aerosols.
Jacqueline, who lives in Aigburth, told the ECHO : "She had her PE kit on the bed and a bottle of deodorant after she emptied her PE bag onto the bed. She's taken a shower, got out of the shower and dried her hair, then sat for about five minutes just on her bed.
"Then, all she knows is a bang and her bed was covered in flames. I was downstairs and I just heard a giant explosion, the house shook a little. I just thought it was a wardrobe upstairs that had fallen down but then I heard Deja screaming at the same time.
"I ran up the stairs and she had just come out her room. She just shouted 'mum, my bed's on fire'. Her legs were really red as well. I ran into the room, the room is quite big but in seconds it was covered in flames that were so high. I ran downstairs to get a mop bucket but I thought about how it's just going to get worse.
"I was going to phone the fire brigade but then there were a load of towels drying over the bannister so I grabbed them and threw them in the bath. I soaked them and then put them over the flames, her bedroom window was already open anyway so the smoke was heading out there.
"The towels did put the fire out. As quick as it happened it was over that quick as well. It was terrifying."
Jacqueline has said that thankfully her daughter's injuries aren't too bad, with her legs starting to blister from the burns. She said: "Her legs were really red when it first happened but this morning the redness has gone down.
"We've been using aftersun, deep freeze and had a fan on her legs all night. This morning the redness has gone down dramatically but she's starting to get blisters now. She's just using the deep freeze a lot which is helping. It could have been so much worse. She could have caught fire or her pyjamas could have caught fire. She's so lucky, unbelievably lucky really."
The British Aerosol Manufacturers' Association has the following warning for aerosols:
Aerosols are pressurised so please remember:
- do not put aerosols on a bonfire, even when empty, because they will explode and may cause injury.
- do not pierce aerosols, even when empty, because there is always pressure left, and possibly product residue. That may be flammable or cause injury if you pierce the can.
- keep aerosols out of the sun and in a cold dry place away from heat. The pressure inside the can increases greatly in the heat and may cause it to burst, causing damage and possibly injuries.
- you should never keep aerosols inside cars because, even in winter, temperatures can rise quickly. If necessary, keep them in the boot.
