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5-year-old boy seriously burned in boat explosion
The 5-year old boy and three adults were on the boat when it exploded. Only the boy was hurt.
DALLAS - A 5-year-old boy was flown to Parkland's burn unit in Dallas after the boat he was on exploded on Lake Texoma.
Video from a witness on the lake shows the large plume of very black smoke coming from the boat Sunday afternoon.
Authorities say three adults and the little boy were on the boat when it happened.
None of the adults were hurt. The boy suffered serious burns.
Late Monday evening, FOX 4 learned that the 5-year-old has been released from Parkland Hospital.
The family is making the trip from Dallas back to the Oklahoma City area where they live.
The blast caused the boy to have burns on his face, arms and legs.
It was supposed to be a nice Sunday on Lake Texoma for Kami Elkins and her children before school starts when they rounded a corner to black plumes of smoke coming from a boat near shore.
"We were going to give them our fire extinguishers to help, but then we saw the smoke getting worse," she recalled.
First responders were on the scene within minutes.
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Boy burned when boat bursts into flames on Lake Texoma
A 5-year-old boy from Oklahoma is heading home after he had to be flown to Parkland Hospital in Dallas Sunday. He and three adults were on a boat that exploded on Lake Texoma.
Elkins watched as the fire stripped the boat down to the frame, wondering if anyone was on it.
"We didn’t know that a family was previously on the boat," she said.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol troopers say the boat had just fueled up at the dock.
When the driver of the boat went to start it, a spark ignited gasoline fumes, causing an explosion.
"Here I am with my husband and my two kids, and we are sitting out here watching this," Elkins said. "And there’s a family that had to drag their own kid off the boat from getting burned."
Lakegoers at a packed Lake Texoma watched as the helicopter took off.
The boy was transferred 100 miles south to Parkland Hospital’s burn unit in Dallas.
Right now, the Oklahoma Highway Patrol is still investigating. It believes the cause is equipment failure.