Freak Boat Explosion Burns 13% of Teen Surfer’s Body in Remote Indonesia

Not all surf trips are created equal. Sometimes, they’re easy, seamless, there’s local infrastructure in place in case shit hits the fan. But other times – like remote Indonesia – that’s not the case. Just like Aussie surfer Jensen Kirby recently found out.

The 19-year-old was on a dream surf trip in Sumatra, when he and his crew experienced a mechanical error with the boat. A seemingly simple fix with the battery. But one small error led to disaster as Kirby was engulfed by flames, burning 13% of his body.

As Kirby explained to ABC News :

“So, we had a mechanic and we had the skipper. We were fixing the boat. We were actually just replacing the battery. And the mechanic was putting the battery on, plugging it in. And he plugged the negative to the positive, and the positive to the negative, so it was wrong. As soon as it clicked, it sparked, and ignited the petrol fumes that were in the boat.

“All I saw was the spark, then the next moment I saw the flames around me. I was like, ‘oh my god! What the hell do I do?’ I just turned around and jumped straight into the water. I was so scared. And then, I got away as far as I could, just in case there wasn’t another explosion. I was so lucky there wasn’t any more petrol on the boat, otherwise it would’ve been way worse.”

Explaining more about the blaze, Kirby continued:

“It was like a full-on fireball. I was in the middle of it. I just remember seeing and hearing the big whooshing sound going passed me. It was crazy. It was like a movie. As soon as I popped up out of the water, it felt like a sunburn…but times a hundred. I ran out of the water, but then I actually ran back in because it was hurting so much. That’s when the skin was coming off my leg. The sand tore it off. It was like someone was just peeling paper off.”

And his injuries?

“13 percent [of his body burned]. It was pretty serious. It was more serious in the fact that I was so far away from help. I didn’t know if I was going to get infected or anything like that. I ran to the showers, found my mom, and I was like, ‘please don’t freak out, mom.’ I told her the boat exploded, and she said I needed to go to the hospital.”

And what about when he’s getting back in the water?

“I’m hoping next week,” he laughed.

Legend. But a serious close call.

Related: Maui Waterman Zane Schweitzer Badly Injured in Boat Collision

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