- Tina’s son Cohen was 12, when he and his best friend were experimenting with a homemade flame thrower on her property after watching a video on TikTok
- After hearing a loud explosion, Tina found her son covered in paint and burns which left his skin almost melting off
- The experiment left Cohen with second and third degree burns to 27 per cent of his body, fighting for his life in ICU
Here Tina Tower, 42, Central Coast, NSW, tells her story in her own words
Have fun boys and be safe,’ I told my son Cohen, and his best friend, both 12, as I ushered them outside, while my older son Kai, 13, played inside.
It was October 2021, during the Covid pandemic, so the kids often roamed our acre of land in the Central Coast, riding their bikes or doing playful experiments to keep themselves entertained.
That day, through the kitchen window, I saw the boys giggling as I watered the indoor plants.
I wonder what game they’re cooking up this time, I mused.
Then, BOOM!
A loud explosion that sounded like a gunshot shook me to my core.
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Abandoning the watering can, I dashed outside to find smoke wafting over our acreage.
‘Oh my god! What just happened?’ I panicked, desperately looking for the boys.
Our neighbour Michael, stunned by the noise too, had already jumped the fence and raced up to Cohen and his friend.
Running closer, I could see that Cohen, whose eyes were wide with shock, was covered in a red substance.
I feared it was blood.
His friend was also dripping with red liquid and looked terrified.
Pulling them both closer to me, I felt Cohen’s skin was burning hot, and realised he was covered in red paint.
‘How did this happen?’ Michael and I asked in tandem.
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Neither of the boys answered. I could tell they were worried they’d get into trouble. But in agony, Cohen cracked.
‘We saw how to make a flame thrower on TikTok, so we really wanted to try and make one ourselves,’ he said, trembling.
‘We lit a can of spray paint on fire thinking it would work, but the paint caught on fire and burnt us.’
My stomach lurched, but there was no time for a telling off. Cohen’s hair was singed, and my gut was telling me that, while he was trying to be brave, my son was badly burnt.
I rushed both boys into the shower to run cold water over them, then called Emergency as well as his friend’s parents, to tell them what’d happened.
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Within 15 minutes, a helicopter and an ambulance had arrived in our backyard.
It was a good job, too, because horrifyingly, after his shower, the skin on Cohen’s arm had melted off. His entire body, including his face, was red, raw and inflamed.
My poor boy was in complete shock and hardly spoke a word.
‘You’ll be okay, Cohen. Just breathe,’ I soothed.
After assessing both boys, paramedics determined that Cohen was badly burnt and needed immediate treatment. His friend had suffered minor burns, and needed specialised treatment too.
The paramedics were also worried that the duo may have suffered internal injuries if they’d breathed in any of the acrid smoke.
Cohen was wrapped in a silver foil emergency blanket before being airlifted to The Children’s Hospital at Westmead.
By now, Cohen’s dad Matt, then 42, was home and his face drained of colour as I told him what had happened.
Due to Covid restrictions, Matt had to stay home with Kai.
So, with Cohen in the air, I went with his friend in the ambulance to the same hospital.
When we got there we learned Cohen had been rushed into intensive care and was awaiting surgery.
‘Your son has suffered second and third degree burns to 27 per cent of his body,’ a doctor said, explaining Cohen’s entire face, left hand, full right arm and both legs were severely burned.
‘Luckily, he shut his eyes and mouth as the fire erupted, so he didn’t breathe in the smoke, and there’s no damage to his organs,’ they added.
During the op, doctors used a special biosynthetic wound dressing and skin grafts from Cohen’s thigh to repair his skin.
But in ICU, my boy slipped in and out of consciousness.
The first few days were horrific, as Cohen was weaned off the high-dose painkillers and he screamed in agony.
My heart broke to see him in such pain.
‘You’re okay, baby,’ I whispered.
Thankfully, Cohen’s wounds were actually healing well.
It meant that within seven days he was able to come home.
We set up a hospital bed there and were supplied with bandages to dress his burns, as well as painkillers and ointments.
Through it all, Cohen remained stoic, following every instruction from the doctors and never complaining.
Within six weeks, I was amazed when his bandages came off. His skin looked raw, tender and paper-thin, but he was healing well.
My boy was soon back to surfing, hanging out with his mates, and slowly getting his bubbly personality back.
Of course, the mental scars of what happened stayed with him.
But Cohen had counselling, which helped him cope, and he’s learned an important lesson from the incident.
‘My actions can have real consequences,’ he told me. ‘I’ll always remember to be careful.’
Now, Cohen, and his friend, both 16, have fully healed from their burns, and have graduated from high school.
The only sign of Cohen’s ordeal is a tiny red splotch on his foot, and we are so thankful for the exceptional care he received from the nurses and doctors in hospital.
Their compassion, along with my boy’s determination while he was recovering, ensured he would only have a positive result.
After everything he’s been through, I am so proud of the young man Cohen has become.
