Explosion of the fondue fuel: a dinner of love turns into a nightmare

Screen Capture, gofundme.com

QMI agency

Friday, 14 July, 2017 14:12

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Friday, 14 July, 2017 14:12

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GATINEAU – Andrea Hartley and Jeffrey Pomminville had just come back from a trip to Mexico, in march last, when, to extend their vacation, they were in for a fondue. A dinner lover who, unfortunately, turned into a nightmare.

Andrea Hartley has suffered burns in the second and third degrees on the face, neck, arms and torso when the fondue fuel gel exploded. His wife in flames, Jeffrey Pomminville has tried everything to save her.

Installed in his living room in the Aylmer sector of the city of Gatineau, in the Outaouais, the couple has found that the flame of the burner was extinguished. It was then that Jeffrey Pomminville grabbed a bottle of gel new one to continue the romantic dinner.

“When he came to fill it, the flame was extinguished, but as it was a new flask. The gel is released from a jet, and it took on fire,” said Andrea Hartley, in an interview with TVA News.

According to the victim, when his spouse dropped the bottle of fuel, the heat is propagated into the bottle, and an explosion occurred.

“It was really a ball of fire. It’s all gone to me,” said Andrea, who was holding the dish, the fondue.

Jeffrey quickly removed the clothes from his wife to attempt to extinguish the flames, but in vain. He then took a blanket to wrap Andrea, but the woman always burned. Mr. Pomminville then took his wife in his arms to carry in the shower.

“It was horror, I saw the skin of his face that was being pulled with the water,” said Jeffrey Pomminville.

“I was on fire. It took a long time to my boyfriend before passing me off,” added the victim, who was conscious all along.

“This is the worst pain I’ve ever felt in my entire life. It’s inexplicable,” she said.

Many transplants

Transported to the burn unit of Hotel-Dieu of Montreal, the young woman has undergone several skin grafts, the grafts taken from his thighs.

“I have thighs that lack of skin. I had to return to walk. Just remove the layer of skin on the thighs, it is even worse than the burns,” said Ms. Hartley.

To try to restore a quality of life to his spouse, Jeffrey Pomminville has put online a campaign of sociofinancement on the platform GoFundMe.

It is that of laser treatments as “miraculous”, not covered by the RAMQ, could greatly help the big burn.

“With skin grafts, it is as if you’re in the skin of a child, but in an adult body. It is super tight. It is really difficult for the movements,” said Ms. Hartley.

According to the couple, the laser treatments improve the elasticity of the skin, decrease the redness and thickness of scars.

The couple hopes to raise $ 50,000 to cover the expenses related to these laser treatments, that might give the young woman the chance to return as close as possible to what it was before the accident”.

Jeffrey Pomminville would like that his wife began her laser treatments in the month of August.

The excess amount will be paid in the name of Andrea Hartley, the Fondation des pompiers du Québec for the burn, one can read on the page GoFundMe dedicated to the victim.