A backyard s’more cookout in California took a scary turn when a small fire ended up burning two children. The tabletop device used suddenly shot flames toward the kids and caught their clothing on fire. Both were hurt badly enough that they needed to be airlifted to a regional burn center. A father who rushed to help in the situation was burned too, and he was taken to the same burn center for treatment.
It happened around 6:30 p.m. at a home on The Strand, where several children and adults had gathered on a patio. According to the Oceanside Fire Department, the small tabletop fireplace was in use when it suddenly flashed, sending flames at the children. Parents and other adults rushed in immediately. They put out the flames by pouring water on the children until paramedics arrived.
Because their injuries were serious, both kids received emergency care at the scene, and then they were flown to a burn center for specialized treatment. The father went to the same center, albeit by ambulance. The children haven’t been publicly identified, and their conditions haven’t been released.
The fuel was seemingly the culprit behind the fiery blaze. Investigators found the tabletop fireplace had rubbing alcohol in it. Alcohol vapors can ignite without warning, much like this one ended up doing. That can happen far more often than one might think. These small alcohol-burning fireplaces have a troubling safety record, and one popular version was flagged by federal regulators more than a year ago.
How a S’mores Night Turned Into a Fire Hazard
The culprit in this situation? Alcohol. Liquid alcohol gives off invisible vapors, and those vapors can catch fire suddenly and violently, especially in warm air. The result is a flash fire, a burst of flame that spreads faster than anyone can react. It can shoot out of the container in what experts call flame jetting, throwing burning fuel onto people nearby. That’s apparently what happened to the children, whose clothing caught fire.
The risk gets worse when someone adds more alcohol to a fire that’s already burning, or one that looks like it’s gone out but isn’t. The flame can travel up the stream of fuel and back to the container, turning it into a torch. That scenario has caused severe burns and even deaths in past incidents. The Oceanside Fire Department is using this case to warn that alcohol vapors can ignite unexpectedly, even when a device seems to be working normally. Their message is simple. Treat these fires as far more dangerous than they look.
A Product Federal Regulators Already Warned About
This type of accident has happened several times before. For example, in December 2024, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued an alert about a popular brand called FLIKR Fire. It urged people to stop using them. The agency called the devices hazardous, warning that they can create uncontrollable fires that lead to serious or fatal burns. Regulators tied the flame-jetting problem to the death of an elderly couple and to other cases of severe burns. The company that sold them has since gone out of business, but the products were sold online from 2018 to 2024, so many are likely still in homes.
For anyone who owns one of these, the safest step is to stop using it. To roast marshmallows, a regular fire pit, a propane fire, or even the stovetop is a safer bet than an alcohol burner. Never add fuel to one that’s lit or recently used, since the flame is often invisible. Keep children well away from any open flame. Burns like these can take months to heal, and some leave lasting scars. It’s best to be vigilant to start with so these issues don’t happen.