Palo family shares story of burn accident for National Burn Awareness Week

Jayna Snodgrass, 8, hates Star Wars macaroni and cheese. She didn't used to, though. Not before the accident.

Two years ago in April, Jayna was helping her mom, Kristin Snodgrass, make macaroni and cheese in the shape of Star Wars characters for herself and her sisters, Arlene and Lois.

Her mom, needing to go to the bathroom, told them to wait at the table. But while she was away, the timer went off. Jayna, then six, reached up over the stove to turn off the 'annoying” beeping, she said.

That's when her shirt caught fire.

The flames spread quickly, licking from the bottom corner of her shirt all the way up to her hair - which had luckily been pulled up, or it may have ignited, too.

Kristin, hearing screams from the kitchen, rushed from the bathroom to find her daughter engulfed in flames and running around the room in a panic.

'I was really nervous,” Jayna said. 'I thought I was going to die.”

Praying, Kristin grabbed Jayna and took her to the floor, forcing a 'stop, drop and roll” and tearing off her clothes before the flames spread further.

Arlene, then eight, hurried to her sister with a cup of water to douse the flames.

'It was a Strawberry Shortcake cup,” Jayna said. 'It's my favorite cup.”

Her favorite, she added, because it saved her life.

Jayna's accident that day resulted in third degree burns. The flames burned through her skin down to the bone, her mom explained. The fire had burned through Jayna's nerves, so at least she wasn't in a terrible amount of pain, she added.

But recovery was long and painful, requiring many months of surgeries, physical and emotional rehabilitation at various hospitals and clinics, including the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City and Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo.

Had Jayna's mother and sister not reacted so quickly, her outcome could have been very different.

According to the American Burn Association (ABA), burn injuries continue to be one of the leading causes of accidental death and injury in the U.S. In fact, the odds of dying from exposure to fire, flames or smoke in the U.S. is 1 in 1442, and children are especially vulnerable. Almost one-third of all burn injuries occur with children under the age of 15.

'Since young children are unaware of danger, they are more susceptible to burn accidents,” said Dr. Patrick D. Brophy, UI professor of pediatrics and medical director of UIeCare, in a news release.

Knowing how to detect the severity of burns can help determine how to treat it. A first-degree burn will be slightly red, warm and tender. A second-degree burn will be bright red, swollen and blistery or oozing. And a third-degree burn will be charred, black, white, leathery or waxy.

If a burn is second or third degree, covers a large area or is on the face, hands, feet or genitals, Brophy recommends calling 911 or seeking medical care immediately.

Injured areas should be quickly submerged in cool water - not ice or butter - to help alleviate pain and to prevent further progression of the burn. Burns should be covered with a cold, moistened cloth for 15 minutes, then dried with a clean towel and covered with a sterile bandage. If the burn begins to blister, apply antiseptic ointment and cover loosely with a clean, non-stick bandage, Brophy instructed in the release.

Most burn victims survive - 96.8 percent, according to the ABA - but many suffer serious scarring, lifelong physical disabilities and adjustment difficulties.

Today, Jayna lives life like most any 8-year-old. But beneath her shirt she wears permanent evidence of her accident. Like a blanket of spiderwebs, scar tissue stretches from her hip to her armpit on her right side.

Even two years later, Jayna still is healing, physically and mentally.

'She's not afraid of fire anymore, but once in a while she'll have nightmares,” Kristin said. 'It's a lot different than a year ago - if she saw something that reminded her of fire she would freeze.”

Kristin, now a mother of four, did everything she knew to keep her kids safe, she said.

But even in childproofed homes, 'accidents can still happen,” Brophy said.

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