A MOTHER has issued an urgent warning after her toddler was left screaming in agony at a popular seaside hotspot due to a dangerous mistake made by beachgoers.
The two-year-old boy was taken to hospital as a result of the “thoughtless” beach-goers activities.
Harry Lambert received burns to both his both feet – after running over an abandoned fire pit on the beach.
Amy Lambert, 36, and her husband Richard Lambert, 37, had driven to Dorset on August 4 for a week’s holiday with their two sons Harry and Tommy, 6.
The family enjoyed the first five days of their holiday playing on Avon beach in Mudeford, Christchurch.
But when the family-of-four visited the beach on August 9th, the mum-of-two said Harry ran over a ‘hot’ patch of sand while playing and began to scream.
Company director Richard rushed Harry into the sea to try and cool his scorched feet down in the water, initially baffled by what had upset him.
As Harry continued to cry, Amy rushed her son back up to the lodge where they were staying and ran his feet under the sink for 20 minutes.
But when this offered no relief, the company director drove him to Royal Bournemouth Hospital in Bournemouth, Dorset , where she was told he had suffered surface burns on his feet.
Wince-inducing photos show the two-year-old’s scorched feet had erupted with ‘fluid-filled’ blisters on each toe, before they were carefully bandaged up.
After flagging the incident to a lifeguard after it happened, it was later discovered to be a fire pit concealed by sand that was still burning.
Now healing, Amy is sharing her son’s story to urge people to put out fire pits and disposable BBQs on the beach properly – to ensure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.
Amy, from Fordingbridge, Hampshire , said: “We went down on the beach in the morning.
“My son Harry was running along on the beach, playing with his digger and he ran across this patch on the beach and instantly started screaming.
“My husband put two and two together and instantly put him in the sea.
“His feet were bright red and from the moment it happened he screamed for a whole hour.
“I felt hopeless as there was nothing we could do [to stop the pain].
“[While I looked after Harry], my husband had gone back to the beach with my other son to tell the lifeguard.
“The lifeguard then got a large bucket of water from the sea and poured it over it [the hot patch of sand].
“A huge cloud of smoke came off it as it was boiling.
“As they poured more water on it, they discovered a fire pit underneath that had been dug into the sand.
“It looked like normal sand and there was nothing to say there was a fire pit there at all.
“It was heartbreaking to see him in pain as there was nothing I could do and I couldn’t explain it to him either as he’s so small.
“He just kept screaming, ‘I don’t like it, I don’t like it’.
“The hospital said that him being in pain was a good thing as he hadn’t suffered any nerve damage and it was just surface burns.
“He had blisters on every one of his toes and the soles of his feet were bright red.”
At the hospital, Harry had both his feet bandaged up and returned the next day for a check up.
Thankfully, Amy says his injuries are now healing well and he will not need surgery on his feet.
Amy said: “He still had the blisters on his toes but they were happy with his progress.
“He has three blisters that are quite large and round and filled with fluid but the others are quite flat.
“Harry is very lucky. He is only small and if he had fallen over or hit his face, it could have been worse.
“He’s a little water baby and loves to be down near the sea.
“We do intend to get him back down there as soon as we can so he’s not worried. It’s not something we’d ever think would happen to him.”
Since the incident, Amy has now shared Harry’s story on social media to warn people about the importance of disposing of their beach BBQs and fire pits properly.
Amy said: “For me, I’ve always known not to cover a BBQ but maybe people don’t know this.
“If you’re down on the beach in the evening having a good time, you’re probably not thinking about the people the next day.
“They probably think that if they cover it, it will be cold the next day. Actually it’s making it worse as sand is a conductor and generates more heat.
“It was just as hot as if there was still a fire there. You just need to cool it down and get rid of it properly.”
Anthony Rogers, head of seafront at BCP Council, said: “It is disappointing that the inconsideration of others has ruined what should have been a lovely trip to the beach for the Lambert family.
“Disposable BBQs are only allowed on our beaches from 6pm to 10.30pm and we consistently ask everyone who uses one to dispose of them properly – that means extinguishing them carefully and leaving it next to our bins ready for collection.
“BBQs should never be buried or put into bins whilst hot and this is an unfortunate reminder of precisely why.
“We wish Harry a speedy recovery and hope he can return and enjoy the beach again soon.”
