A man who used a disposable BBQ on a beach and sustained third-degree burns from scorching sand has cautioned others about the risks.
Sam Knight and his family had been using it on the still-hot sand at Cefn Sidan Beach in Carmarthenshire.
After developing severe blisters on his feet, the 27-year-old required weeks of medical attention and had to be dragged off the beach.
Experts at a burn center cautioned beachgoers to take cautious because accidents like this are becoming more frequent.
Knight said he was unaware that sand may be a “real hazard” on Radio Wales Breakfast.
He believed it was safe because he had moved the BBQ to one side and put it out with tongs. “When I returned to the area, I stepped on a boiling hot patch of sand, and had to be carried off the beach,” he continued.
“I couldn’t walk for a couple of weeks so I had to take a fortnight off work,” Knight said after being transported to Neath Port Talbot Hospital and referred to a burn expert.
Physiotherapists David Fligelstone and Menna Davies are employed by Swansea Bay University Health Board’s burn center.
According to Fligelstone, there are “going up year on year” instances.
“The key thing is that people don’t understand is that sand stays hot for such a long time after a barbecue is moved,” he stated.
According to the facts, the injury is always caused by the uncooled sand.
Such injuries can be “quite painful” and require “long period of time” dressing, according to Davies.
Knight made the decision to test two disposable barbecues after he recovered.
Raising the barbecue from the sand, he discovered, maintained it closer to room temperature.
To stop heat from moving to the sand, the Swansea Bay Health Board advised using bricks, stones, or a special stand.
Additionally, used barbecues should be carried home or disposed of by putting them in a designated hot-ash container.
According to the health authority, children who get beach sand burns need to have an immediate medical evaluation.
Walking on scorching sand where they had previously been having barbecues has caused beachgoers with severe burns on their feet.
After suffering serious injuries from the intense heat, victims had to miss work and endure months of suffering and recovery.
Because sand keeps high temperatures even after disposable barbecues have been disposed of properly, Morriston Hospital Burns’ Center has issued a caution to anyone considering al fresco cooking when visiting Wales’ beaches.
Sam Knight burnt himself after a family cookout at Cefn Sidan earlier this year, leaving him unable to walk for two weeks.
“There was sand in everyone’s eyes because it was a windy day and it was a family gathering,” the 27-year-old stated.
I moved the barbecue to one side and put it out with tongs after we were done, so I assumed it was safe.
However, I had to be taken off the beach after stepping on the still-boiling area of sand. I visited the Minor Injury Unit at Neath Port Talbot Hospital, but they only gave me bandages and advised me to travel to the Burns’ Center in Morriston because my burns were so severe.
“I had to miss two weeks of work because I couldn’t walk for a few weeks.”
When Sam, a mechanical engineer, was free to return to the beach, he made the decision to put his professional talents to use. He went back to the beach and conducted an experiment, lighting two disposable barbecues, one of which was placed directly on the sand and the other 40mm above it. He found that the temperature of the sand beneath the first was 244°. Under the tested conditions, the barbecue rose from the sand maintained a temperature close to room temperature.
“The packaging suggested finding some bricks at the location it was being used, but it didn’t provide a way to raise the barbecue from the surface,” he continued.