Boy dies of burns after fall at geothermal park

A BOY has died after being scalded from head to foot when he fell into a geothermal pool at a public park.

It was not clear immediately how the ten-year-old was burned while visiting Kuirau Park in the New Zealand city of Rotorua, which is known for its steaming geysers and hot mud and water pools.

Witness Anna Kare said the boy was screaming in agony as a teenager carried him to his parents after the accident, according to the New Zealand Herald newspaper.

"The boy was yelling 'my hands, my hands', and I saw all the skin on his hands peeling off," Ms Kare said. "I saw the burns were all the way from his head to his feet."

She said there was no mud on the boy so it was likely he had fallen into a hot water pool.

The accident, which happened on Sunday, was made public on Wednesday.

The boy, whose name was not released, was initially taken to a local hospital but was later airlifted to Auckland, where he died yesterday.

Air ambulance pilot Grant Bremner said the boy was unconscious when he was transported.

"He was on a ventilator and on life support. He was severely burned," he said.

Later in the day, Middlemore Hospital spokeswoman Lauren Young said the child had died from his "unsurvivable" injuries with his family at his bedside.

The boy was of Pacific Island ethnicity and believed to have been visiting New Zealand with his family.

Rotorua District Council parks and recreation manager Garry Page said mud and water geothermal pools could reach 100C - the boiling point of water.

All pools in the park have safety fences and carry warning signs, and it was unclear how the boy had fallen into one.

"I'm confident that all of our pools are adequately fenced. Providing people stay behind the fencing, it's all perfectly safe," Mr Page said.