A 12-year-old boy in Kerala, India, has died after trying to imitate a hair-straightening act he saw on social media.

According to reports, the victim, identified as Sivanarayanan, sustained serious burns after he applied kerosene to his air and tried to straighten it with a lit matchstick.

He reportedly tried this in the bathroom of his home last week, when only his grandmother was at home, police said.

The police said that the victim was trying to emulate a hair straightening technique he had seen on YouTube, which show certain barbers using spirit and fire on their customers' hair to style them.

The fire quickly spread to his body from his head and it took a while before he was found, badly burnt in the bathroom, before being rushed to the hospital.

Such a sad story indeed. This tragedy is a lesson that children should not be allowed to get engrossed in social media, let alone try tricks and stunts shown in videos online, without adult supervision.

As essential as it is to allow children access to electronic gadgets to keep up with the times, it is however, best done under strict monitoring by parents or guardians.


Source: Outlookindia.com, telenganatoday.com
Photo source: Opindia.com, Youtube