'These kids were on fire': Current, former Pulaski students among 'many' injured at bonfire, reports say
A number of former and current Pulaski Community School District students were injured at a bonfire Friday night in Shawano County after an accelerant was thrown onto the fire, according to a statement from the Shawano County Sheriff's Office and an email from the school district.
The bonfire was at a home on Cedar Drive in Maple Grove around 10 p.m. Friday, the sheriff's office said, when an accelerant was thrown onto the fire that caused an explosion, which caused "the fire to expand out of control."
Several people at the bonfire were taken to local Green Bay-area hospitals to be treated for burns.
The sheriff's office said it is unknown how many people were injured in the bonfire. A GoFundMe page set up for one of the injured teens says it was about 30 people.
"The severity of injuries sustained to different individuals is unknown," the sheriff's office said, though social media accounts indicate some of them were severe.
One Pulaski High School graduate was taken to a burn center in Milwaukee, according to the GoFundMe page, which was set up to help the injured teen and his family.
Jen Ziech, who set up the fundraiser for her nephew, told the Press-Gazette a few others were also flown down to Milwaukee for their injuries.
"It was like sending firebombs out to all these kids. Six or seven were flighted down to the burn unit (in Milwaukee)" she said.
"These kids were on fire. There was kids helping kids, rolling them and patting them down, trying to do whatever they could," Ziech said.
Timothy Trinh's son remembers hearing a "whoosh" sound and feeling hot behind him as he stood next to the bonfire. He turned around and saw the fire "squirting out like a firehose and it was just hitting people," he told his dad. He didn't realize he got burned.
"He and two other guys he was with took their sweatshirts off and were putting out the fires on people and everybody was on the ground rolling and trying to get the fire out," Trinh told the Press-Gazette.
Trinh's son had burns on the back of his right leg from the explosion. He had returned from college to visit his girlfriend and go to the homecoming dance with her on Saturday.
He went to St. Vincent Hospital on Friday night to get treated and saw a few other people waiting to get airlifted for more critical care.
In an email sent to families Saturday afternoon, the Pulaski district said: "We have been made aware of a tragic accident that occurred last night in the Hofa Park area involving many individuals of which included several graduates and current students of PCSD.
"Although we don’t have detailed information, we want to provide support to our students and families. Information will be forthcoming to our students through Canvas on ways to connect with our school counselors today and tomorrow."
Trinh's son was up and about Saturday and walking around the house, but was still in shock — he had never experienced something like it before, he told his dad.
"He kept saying it was the worst thing he’d ever seen in his life," Trinh said.
The school district is providing mental health and grief counselors. Support can be found by calling the Brown and Shawano County Crisis Lines at 715-526-3240 or the Oconto County After Hours Crisis Line at 920-496-7000.
Oak Ridge Counseling and Consulting is also providing support at 920-264-7845.
An investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information about the incident should call the Shawano County Sheriff's Office at 715-526-3111.
Contact Benita Mathew at bmathew@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter at @benita_mathew.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Current and former Pulaski students injured at bonfire in Hofa Park
