Shocked millions watch a video in shock as a badly burned mother screams in pain from a kitchen blast while protecting her toddler son. - Photo: SCMP composite/Douyin
BEIJING (SCMP): Millions online have been moved by a mother in China who was seriously injured in a gas explosion but managed to save her toddler son from danger.
Huang Jiamei, a 38-year-old housewife from eastern China’s Zhejiang province, was cooking in the kitchen of her home when leaking gas exploded on October 14.
Her two-year-old son, Xu Nuo, was outside the kitchen’s closed door crying for her when the explosion happened. The door was blasted off and the child was trapped under it.
A viral online video shows the family’s blazing flat just seconds after the gas blast. - Photo: Weixin
Footage from a home surveillance camera posted by her husband Xu Xiaohui shows Huang running out of the kitchen screaming in pain, but the first thing she did was retrieve her son.
Despite the skin peeling from her arms, she gently held up her son and put him down in a safe spot.
Huang then called Xu, and told neighbours to call an emergency hotline.
Xu, who works as a hairstylist, immediately rushed home and was shocked to find that his wife’s hair was singed, her skin had fallen from her swollen hands and legs and her face was pale because of the burning heat.
He said on their way to the hospital Huang kept asking about their son.
Xu said 60 to 70 per cent of Huang’s body suffered from second-degree burns. Their son suffered a scratch to his back.
He also said Huang had the habit of closing the kitchen door while cooking which saved their son’s life.
Huang’s doctor Jin Fang, at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, told Tide News that he could not imagine how Huang could handle her child so steadily and gently under the circumstances.
Jin said Huang was in a critical condition.
Huang, pictured with her son, has been praised online for her selfless and loving actions. Photo: Weixin
On October 19, she had her first surgery in which her dead skin was removed using a steel brush to allow the tissue beneath to breathe again.
Xu said he could not imagine his wife’s pain, but she appeared to be cheered-up whenever he showed her videos of their son.
The video attracted more than 9 million views on social media. The family had also received more than a million yuan (US$140,000) in donations from kind-hearted strangers.
“A mother’s love is so great and selfless,” one online observer said.
“She must feel comforted that her son was only slightly injured,” said another.
“She is such a brave mum. Hope her bravery can help her get through the recovery,” said another.
Some also advised people to use gas pipes made with stronger material such as steel, and gas valves with sensors that detect leaks. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
