EXCLUSIVE

A TEENAGER has lost an eye after an aerosol can on a camp fire exploded in his face.

And Jake Binner, who was in agonising pain after the freak accident, has issued a stark warning to others: "Don't play with fire."

Jake's eyeball had to be removed after it was ruptured in the incident.

The 14-year-old was meeting his friends on the Coppice last Monday evening but when he arrived they were gathered around a small camp fire.

Jake's chocolate labrador Rosco was walking dangerously close to the fire so Jake moved closer to pull him away.

It was then he heard a hiss and then a big bang.

Jake, a pupil at Mount Carmel RC Science College, told the Observer: "The next thing I knew I was on the floor. My friends thought that I was joking at first."

Jake's mum Alison, 34, of Manor Street, Accrington, said that her son's friends called for an ambulance as soon as they saw the blood running down his face.

She said: "Jake can't remember much about it but one of his friends called me and I just raced up there. When I arrived Jake staggered towards me and then he just sat on the floor. He kept asking me to hug him.

"I had to keep calm for everyone else. Jake was hysterical because he couldn't open his eye and his friends were panicking. I thought he had just been badly cut."

Jake was rushed to Burnley General Hospital and taken into surgery at midnight.

Surgeons opened his eyelid to see if they could repair any damage but the eyeball was ruptured so badly it had to be removed.

A week later he was transferred to the Manchester Eye Hospital and a coral implant was inserted into the socket to prevent any rejection by Jake's immune system.

He now has a bandage over his eye which will be removed in a week's time.

Alison said: "He can't go back to school until September. It's going to be a long process but in about three months he should be well on the road to recovery.

"He will eventually be measured for a false eye which will be painted and you won't be able to tell that it isn't real.

"I just want this to be a warning to others. Children should stay away from fires, you just never know what is going to happen. All Jake was doing was walking his dog and meeting his friends. It was all innocent but this could happen to anyone.

"Luckily, I still have Jake but it could have been a lot worse. People need to be careful, it could have been someone's life."

Detective Sergeant Paul Rudd of Accrington CID said that inquiries had been carried out and he was satisfied it was a complete accident.

However, he urged youngsters to be extremely cautious when playing near a fire of any size.

He added: "Everyone needs to be aware of the perils of playing with fire. Jake was lucky in this instance. Whatever caused the explosion was probably there before the fire was started."