Each winter, colds and the flu seem to take over causing individuals in Butler County and beyond to suffer with a variety of symptoms including fever, chills, runny noses, coughs and sore throats. This past season stomach ailments were also running rampant. In a effort to stem some of the transfer of germs, over the course of the past few months there has been an increased emphasis on keeping one's hands clean.

People of all ages have been encouraged to wash their hands frequently. In addition, many people have been using hand sanitizers to accomplish the same task without the need for water, soap and towels. Some of that use may be reduced however after news broke of a girl being seriously injured in a fire that ensued after she used an alcohol based sanitizer.

The fire appears to have been accidentally started. Currently it is suspected that the fire started due to a combination of static electricity and the flammable hand cleaner. The fire seriously injured the 11-year-old girl, burning more than 12 percent of her body. The girl, who was in the hospital receiving treatment for cancer at the time of the incident, had to undergo surgery for skin grafts.

While this incident is certainly troubling, firefighters indicate that the odds of a fire occurring, due to a situation such as this one, are not great. Despite this, manufacturers of the hand sanitizer may want to take note. Should the formula used in this particular product be found to contribute to more accidents like this one, it could find that it is facing products liability lawsuits.

Source: NBC Los Angeles, "Safe Use of Hand Sanitizer Urged After Girl Burned at Hospital," John Cadiz Klemack and Julie Brayton, Feb. 21, 2013

• Consumers who purchase products expect that they will not inflict harm. Unfortunately this is not always the case. Our firm handles similar situations to the one discussed in this post. If you would like to learn more about our practice, please visit our Pennsylvania defective products page.