MISSION BAY (NEWS 8) – A toddler was burned by hot coals buried in the sand at Mission Bay, and now his mother is sharing a warning to other parents.
Brittany Hunter told News 8, her 18-month-old son, King Carter, was beginning to walk on his own when he stepped on the burning coals that were buried instead of being thrown out.
“My baby just started walking. Now, he’s back to crawling,” said Hunter.
According to Hunter, she and her family were setting up a picnic at Ventura Cove on Sunday. When her and King Carter were walking down to the beach, he stepped on the hot coals. “My son stops and starts jumping up and down screaming and hollering. I run over to him and pick him up and look at his feet and they are burnt.”
Hunter claims she saw sparks flying from the ground as her son screamed. Reacting quickly she took him to the hospital where he was treated for second degree burns.
“I had to sit there and stay strong. When he goes to sleep and I get out of that hospital room, I am bawling tears because I wish it was me instead of my son. Eighteen months, really?”
Hunter said the coals looked to be buried in the sand by someone who had likely used them earlier in the day.
“I am letting everybody know be careful. Check the sand because you never know. You have to go out there and check the sand yourself before you let them run around barefoot,” she said.
According to the City of San Diego’s beach regulations, coals are supposed to be deposited in hot coal containers.
Hunter’s message to the person that dumped them in the sand instead: “Maybe you need to come forward and give an apology. Not to me as a parent, but to my son who is 18 months and just trying to run around have fun.”