Four boys having a mid-week sleepover were injured late Thursday
night when fumes from white gas exploded in the backyard of a house
on Foothill Court and sprayed them with fire.
Four boys having a mid-week sleepover were injured late Thursday night when fumes from white gas exploded in the backyard of a house on Foothill Court and sprayed them with fire.
Capt. Dennis Johnsen, the Santa Clara County Fire Department arson and explosion investigator, said the youths, all aged 12 to 13, were playing with a lighter when a one-gallon gas can caught fire and exploded.
One boy remains hospitalized in the burn unit at Valley Medical Center in San Jose with third-degree burns to his face and hands. He was listed in stable condition Friday but the center is releasing no further updates on his condition.
A second boy suffered second-degree burns to his lower leg and hands. He was treated and released Thursday night from VMC. Two other boys with first degree burns were treated at Saint Louise Regional Hospital and released.
Burns are rated first- to third-degree, with third being the most serious.
The incident, which was initially classified as arson, was referred to Johnsen for further investigation.
He said the boys were not trying to burn anything but were pouring gas on a flip-top lighter, trying to get it to light.
“The lighter sparked, jumped to the open gas can and ignited the fumes,” he said.
Burning gas then sprayed the boys and caught their clothes on fire. One boy’s mother, who was in the house, ran outside when she heard the can explode and rolled the more seriously injured boy on the ground, putting out the fire. The other boys managed to pull off their burning clothes.
Johnsen said a neighbor, hearing the “boom,” jumped over the fence with a dry chemical fire extinguisher to extinguish the blaze.
“The gas can was only one-quarter full so there was a big space in the can for fumes,” Johnsen said.
White gas fumes catch fire at low temperatures, much lower than gasoline used in automobiles. He said the low temperatures Thursday night kept the fumes down; if the day had been hot, fumes would have expanded and been even more dangerous.
The boys, who were friends, Johnsen said, were having a sleepover. He said they are all home-schooled.
Johnsen said the incident was referred to as “arson” because the police department does not deal with explosive-type events.
“We work together,” he said.
Johnsen said the department will strongly suggest that the boys attend a two-day, six-hour class for children covering fire safety, self-esteem and other subjects but that the boys would not be cited.
Because the boys will not be charged, they cannot be forced to attend the fire-safety course, Johnsen said.
Foothill Court is a short cul-de-sac behind Community Park and the intersection of Spring and Del Monte avenues.
“White gas (often used in camping stoves and lanterns) is very dangerous,” said Brad Darbro, battalion chief for the Santa Clara County Fire Department. “It’s very volatile and easily lit. Once it’s lit, it tends to flame.”
Darbro said the SCCFD has a Public Education Officer, Christy Moore, who visits schools, scouts and other groups and gives a presentation to children on the importance of fire safety.
Moore can be reached at county fire headquarters, 378-4010.
