KARACHI, Nov 7: Severe burns, believed to be of sulphuric acid reaction, has spoiled lives of three children who have received the injuries while playing in a pond near their house on Tuesday.

Taj Mohammad (9), Dilawar (10) and Faisal (10) used to play in the pond, in Dawood Chowrangi locality of Quaidabad, during their usual playtime. Unlike the past, the pond water started irritating Dilawar, who was the first to jump into it, on Tuesday.

He raise hue and cry when he felt that his feet were burning. Taj Mohammad and Faisal, his cousins, jumped into the pond guessing something wrong but they also began shrieking with similar feelings.

Their distress call drew the attention of a passerby, a truck driver, who came to their rescue and all the three victims were rushed to the National Institute of Child Health (NICH).

Describing their injuries as ‘third degree burns’ Dr Afaq, Deputy Director of the NICH, told PPI that the children might have to live with permanent disability. Referring to the medical examination reports, he feared that all of them might lose their feet. Dilawar may lose his feet fingers also, he added.

Analyzing the cause of burns, Dr Afaq concluded that the pond water contained strong sulphuric acid and the contamination was definitely caused by some sort of industrial waste disposed of into the pound.

A garbage treatment factory is located near the pond and its workers are suspected to have thrown the acidic material into the pond.

According to doctors at the NICH, the hospital entertains more or less 300 children every year for various types of burns. The mortality rate among them due to different sorts of complications during treatment, is 30 per cent.—PPI