Latest news with #VianaPoggi
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
California woman, 18, is disfigured in freak accident involving s'mores on a tabletop firepit
A California woman's been left disfigured after flames 'exploded' in her face while making s'mores over an outdoor firepit. Viana Poggi, 18, was enjoying a fun summer night on July 6 with her cousin Alaina Arbiso when chaos unfolded before their eyes. While using a cement tabletop firepit, flames suddenly blew toward Poggi, leaving her with blistering burns on her face and arms. Her cousin Arbiso said all she could remember was how fast everything happened in that terrifying moment, before she pushed her relative into a nearby pool. Arbiso said: 'Within, like, a millisecond, you don't even see it coming - you have no time to react. It just happened.' After pushing Poggi into the water, Arbiso then grabbed a hose and sprayed down the flames spreading on the table. Another family member was also hit by the dangerous flames, but only Poggi was severely injured. When she got to a local burns center, staff asked Poggi about what was used to fuel the firepit. Poggi said: 'Even when I got to the ER, I just said I got hit by fire, and they asked me, "Was it rubbing alcohol?" Because it's so common for people to be burned that way.' A friend of hers Alexandra Welsh, who's a trauma nurse in the emergency room, was shocked after seeing someone she knew arrive with such intense injuries. Welsh said: 'I work at a trauma center, so I see a lot of traumatic injuries come in, but it is so different when it is someone who you think of as a little sister.' Despite the freak accident impacting her life, Poggi, who's been left with scars and burn marks, decided to make the best of it. She documented her recovery on TikTok, where she showed herself wearing a hospital gown when she was still covered in bandages. Poggi said: 'I always remember it could have been worse. I try to keep a good attitude.' The teen's due to start college soon at the University of San Francisco but, because of the burns, she's also preparing for several procedures to help with her recover. A GoFundMe page was set up by Arbiso to help her cousin with medical expenses while she embarked on the next chapter of her life. Arbiso wrote about Poggi: 'With the big move coming, multiple reconstruction surgeries, and a long emotional/physical recovery in her foreseeable future, [she's] going to need all the help she can get.' Poggi hoped that her unfortunate experience would make other people think twice before they used specific types of firepits. She said: 'I really want people to know the danger of using an alcohol-fueled pit because they are so common. We owned, I think, three of them.' There were several types of tabletop alcohol-fueled firepit available to buy online and in stores. Some were fueled by gel fuel, wood, wood pellets, and propane. Last year, multiple types of the vessel were recalled by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. The recall on the popular brand Colsen's pits warned that 'alcohol flames can be invisible and lead to flame jetting when refilling the firepit reservoir'.
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Daily Mail
California woman disfigured after suffering freak accident while making s'mores on outdoor fire pit
A California woman was left brutally disfigured after flames 'exploded' in her face while making s'mores over an outdoor fire pit. Viana Poggi, 18, was enjoying a fun summer night on July 6 with her cousin Alaina Arbiso when chaos unfolded before their eyes. While using a cement tabletop firepit flames suddenly blew toward Poggi, leaving blistering burns on her face and arms. 'We were making s'mores and what happened to me is called fire jetting. It's when an alcohol-fueled pit basically explodes,' the Laguna Niguel resident told KABC. Some tabletop fire pits, like the one Poggi used, are fueled by rubbing alcohol, but when hers needed to be refilled with the substance nobody knew a small flame was still burning inside. 'Because it was so quick I closed my eyes. I wasn't aware I was on fire. I thought I had just been burned by the rubbing alcohol,' the incoming college freshman told the outlet. When the hot flames hit her, Poggi said it felt cold against her skin before realizing what was happening to her. 'I was pushed into the pool and at that point we knew I was on fire. They had the ambulance come,' Poggi recalled. Arbiso said all she could remember was just how fast everything happened in that terrifying moment before she pushed her cousin into the water. 'Within like a millisecond, you don't even see it coming, you have no time to react. It just happened,' she said. After pushing Poggi into the water, Arbiso then grabbed a hose and sprayed down the flames spreading on the table. Another family member was also hit by the dangerous flames, but only Poggi was severely injured. When she got to a local burn center, Poggi was immediately asked by staff what was used to fuel the fire pit. 'Even when I got to the ER I just said I got hit by fire, and they asked me, "Was it rubbing alcohol?" Because it's so common for people to be burned that way,' she stated. One of her good friends, Alexandra Welsh, who works as a trauma nurse at the local hospital, was left shocked after seeing someone she knew come in with such intense injuries. 'I work at a trauma center, so I see a lot of traumatic injuries come in, but it is so different when it is someone who you think of as a little sister,' Welsh told the outlet. Despite the freak accident impacting her life, Poggi, who's been left with scars and burn marks, has decided to make the best of it. She's been documenting her recovery on TikTok, showing herself dressed in a hospital gown, covered in bandages as she heals. 'I always remember it could have been worse. I try to keep a good attitude,' Poggi said. She is due to start college next month at the University of San Francisco, but because of the burns she is also preparing for several procedures to help her recover. A GoFundMe page has since been launched by Arbiso to help her cousin with medical expenses while she takes on this next chapter of her life. 'With the big move coming, multiple reconstruction surgeries, and a long emotional/physical recovery in her foreseeable future, V is going to need all the help she can get,' Arbiso wrote. As of Friday afternoon, nearly $12,000 was raised to help Poggi. She also hopes that her unfortunate experience will make others think twice before using the specific fire pits. 'I really want people to know the danger of using an alcohol-fueled pit cause' they are so common. We owned I think three of them,' Poggi warned. Several brands of tabletop alcohol-fueled fire pits are sold online. Some are fueled by gel fuel, wood, wood pellets, and propane. Just last year, multiple tabletop fire pits were recalled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
