10-Year-Old Boy Suffers Horrific Burns After Grandfather’s Coffin Accidentally Catches Fire

A 10-year-old boy was left with horrific burns after his grandfather’s coffin was accidentally set on fire by the neighbors, who had gathered to pay their respects to the deceased.

The blaze started after one of the neighbors, who visited the boy’s house in the village of Yuskivtsi in western Ukraine's Ternopil Oblast region, left a lit candle on top of the coffin.

“My father died and the coffin with his body was in the house,” the victim’s father said. “In the early morning, some neighbors came to say goodbye to the deceased. They lit a candle and put it on the coffin. Leaving the house, they did not put out the candle which then set the coffin on fire.”

After the coffin caught fire from candle’s flame, it rapidly spread to the adjacent room, where the victim, Ruslan Pyrch, was sleeping. “I woke up in pain and saw that my room was on fire. My face was burning and I covered it with my hands. I jumped on the floor and climbed under my bed. I did not understand what was going on,” the 10-year-old told local media outlets, Daily Mail reported.

Smoke coming out of the boy’s room was first noticed by the boy’s grandmother, who was standing in the courtyard near the house. She wasted no time in jumping to action to save her grandson.

“I was going to run into his room but the door was on fire. I rushed outside, broke the window and got in,” she said. “I found him lying motionless on the floor and carried him to the window.”

Soon a number of witnesses gathered at the scene and helped the grandmother to pull the 10-year-old to safety. They also called the emergency services. The boy suffered severe burns to his head, face, hands and back and was rushed to the intensive care unit at the Ternopil Regional Children Hospital.

Volodymyr Bilynskyi, the head deputy of the hospital said the victim was in a stable condition, following the incident. “The boy got severe burns to his body. Doctors managed to stabilize his condition. His life is not in danger now,” he said.

It was unclear when the incident happened.

The corpse, along with the coffin, were damaged in the fire. Pyrch’s grandfather was reportedly buried soon after the fire was put out. Authorities said they were investigating the source of the fire and that the 10-year-old’s father may be fined for failing to ensure the safety of his child.