The only safe way to extinguish a campfire is with water, according to a report in the latest edition of the Medical Journal of Australia.

The research was undertaken by Dr John F Fraser, Dr Kelvin L Choo and Dr Roy M Kimble of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health, Royal Children's Hospital, Brisbane, and Mr David Sutch, a firefighter with the Queensland Fire and Rescue Authority.

They discovered that more than 70 per cent of burns incurred by children from campfires were caused by hot embers rather than flames, most occurred the morning after the campfire had been considered extinguished using sand.

Dr Fraser said that sand is not fully effective in extinguishing fires.

"Even eight hours after a campfire has been extinguished with sand, it retains sufficient heat to cause a full-thickness burn after contact of just one second with the skin," he said.

"Because extinguishing a fire with sand only disguises the danger, campfire burn is a particular hazard for children.

"Campfire burns result in significant post-burn scarring, which requires recurrent expensive treatment as the child grows older.

"With camping a popular national pastime for Australians during the holidays, we advise parents to exercise particular care with campfires and kids.

"As a simple rule, use water not sand to put out your campfires," Dr Fraser said.

The Medical Journal of Australia is a publication of the Australian Medical Association.

 CONTACT: Dr John F Fraser, Telephone: 07 3346 4643 / 0407 128 039,

                  Fax: 07 3365 5455, Email: j.fraser@uq.edu.au

                  John Flannery (AMA) 0419 494 761 / 02 6270 5477