FACTS
- First Degree– These burns are considered the least serious out of the three levels of severity. They affect the outside layer of the skin (the epidermis). The burn site is red, painful, dry, and with no blisters. A mild sunburn would be an example of a first degree burn. There are usually no long term effects to the skin or body resulting from this level of burn.
- Second Degree– These burns involve the epidermis and part of the dermis layer of skin. The burn site appears red, blistered, and may be swollen and painful.
- Third Degree– These are the most serious type of burns a person can have. These burns destroy the epidermis and dermis and may go into the subcutaneous tissue. The burn site may appear white or charred.
STATS
- The CDC estimates 1.1 million burn injuries need medical attention every year- of these burns.
- 50,000 require hospital stay
- 20,000 have burns involving 25 percent of the body
- 4,500 people die
- From the mid 1970s about 9,000 people died of burn injuries annually and anyone with burns covering more than 20 percent of their body almost always died.
- Today, people with burns covering 90 percent of their body can survive, but will likely have permanent disabilities
- Americans have a 1 in 1,442 chance of dying from exposure to fire, flames or smoke inhalation.
- Around 10,000 people die annually from burn-related infections.
- Explosions with carbon monoxide can cause oxygen levels in a fire atmosphere to drop from 21 to 10 percent.
- 1,345,500 fires were reported in 2015- almost a 4 percent increase from 2014:
- 639,500 were classified as outside & ‘other’ fires, totaling one every 49 seconds
- 501,500 fires were classified as structure fires, totaling one every 63 seconds
- 174,000 fires were classified as highway vehicle fires, totaling one every 181 seconds
- A fire department responded to a fire every 23 seconds.