Burn victims find their fighting spirit again through the gentle persuasion and loving encouragement from the emergency management service's public information, education and relations unit and its volunteers.

Shannese Scheepers plays with her twinning mates, Alex Jones and Patrick Cooper

FROM scared and inhibited to exuberant and somewhat mischievous - this is the change that takes place after burn victims attend one of the City of Johannesburg's burn rehabilitation camps.

Harry Annandale, the station commander of the public information, education and relations unit (PIER) in the City's emergency management services department, has been working with burn victims since 2003. "We are the only city in South Africa doing these burn camps," he says.

Annandale is also the logistics portfolio director of the Burn Foundation Southern Africa.

There are about 15 000 burn victims in South Africa, with the 0 to 4-year-old group most at risk of being injured or even killed in this way.

"The biggest problem [for burn victims] is their fear of being seen in public. Some of them do not want to come out of their houses."

And this is where the camps play a critical role. "It is about taking the child out of their situation." Generally children have to overcome a lot. Besides the physical trauma of being burned, children struggle with emotional issues. They do not want to look in a mirror. They are afraid to go out in public. They have feelings of anger, helplessness, self-hatred and disgust. Suicide and divorce is not uncommon among burn-victim families," says Annandale.

Healing camps
At least two camps are offered every year, and no more than 20 children are accommodated at any one time to maximise their effect. Over the two or three days of the camps, children experience a space conducive to healing, and everything is done for the sake of fun.

Burn victims learn to cope with the emotional and physical difficulties of their injury during the camps

They are allowed to vent their anger, talk about their feelings and share their experiences around sharing circles. Camp organisers use some innovative ways for the children to have fun and deal with their anger at the same time. The old, effective method of breaking plates, Greek style, is sometimes employed. And if plates are in short supply, the children throw rocks at an object. And special tree-planting ceremonies allow them to bury their negative experiences.

Swimming forms a critical part of the therapy, encouraging the children to expose their scars to others. Nature walks bring some quiet time. And they are allowed to push their minds and bodies to extremes with bridge swinging, abseiling and a 120m foefie-slide.

Some of the children are more fearful than others, but with encouragement from the rest of the group, they soon put Tarzan to shame. And slowly a seed germinates, says Annandale.

"They start thinking, ‘If I can do this, I can do other things too.'"

No limits
"People make the mistake of putting limitations on the disabled person." Annandale himself has done this. On one of the camps, a little girl who lost both her hands in a fire wanted to complete the obstacle course. Everything went well until she reached the cargo net, reaching high above her head.

The emphasis of the burn rehab camps is on having fun. The obstacle course is a favourite

Annandale thought the only way she could climb it was if he took her up himself, clinging on to his neck.

Then, half-way up the net, Annandale realised it was too difficult for him. He turned around and put her safely back where they started. But the girl would have none of it. With her little stumps she slowly crawled up, over the net, and landed on the other side. She completed the whole obstacle course by herself.

During the camps, volunteer Francine Davis, a psychologist and lecturer at the University of the Witwatersrand, observes the children. "If we feel that the child needs more help, a letter to that effect is written to the hospital staff," Annandale says.

Not that this occurs often; even in extreme cases, where a child's face and body are severely mutilated and the child has been unable to deal with the emotional trauma, his or her state of mind changes quickly at these camps.

Shannese Scheepers was nine years old when she attended her first camp. Even after many skin-graft operations, her face is severely scarred. She was quiet and withdrawn. "After the first camp she climbed out of her cage," confirms volunteer Angela Lai.

The helpers and volunteers gain as much as the children do from these camps - the personal growth one experiences is phenomenal, according to Annandale. "You as a person grow so much more, your inner spirit grows. You have an intense appreciation for life."

When he feels particularly down and despondent about life, he visits the burn victims units at Chris Hani Baragwanath or Milpark hospitals. "When I walk out of there I am a new person."

Hospital visits
Burn victims can spend anything from two months to two years in hospital. It is debilitating both to their personal growth and to their school work.

Lai, who has been working with burn victims as a volunteer for over a year, visits the two hospitals with a special group of individuals - EMS's Care Clowns. The visits are on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

She's not sure who gets more out of these visits - herself or the children she has to cheer up. Lai describes herself as a reserved person; she doesn't like talking. But at the hospital, she is another person.

"She brings the children out of their comfort zones," Annandale explains.

And before long, usually depressed and lethargic children are racing around the hospital corridors.

One such patient was 13-year-old Vincent Qoso from Sasolburg, who has terrible burns to his body as a result of a shack fire. "Vincent was in a ward all by himself when I first met him," Lai says. He never got out of his bed and he spoke extremely softly during the first few visits.

But thanks to Lai's gentle persuasion it didn't take long before he was racing through the hospital in a wheelchair.

She still regularly keeps in touch with Vincent, who is back at home after spending six months in hospital. He didn't want to return to school at first and battled with homework in the beginning, she says. But with simple and constant encouragement from his family and her, he is now settling down nicely.

In the words of the World Burn Foundation representative, Bernard Heitz, himself a burn survivor after an aeroplane crash, "it's so easy to do so much".

Other programmes
Besides the camps, the Care Clowns and the hospital visits run by PIER and its 21 volunteers, burn rehabilitation programmes include care-day outings; sharing circles for family members and councillors at the various Be Safe Centres; and the reintroduction to school programme.

All programmes are open to anyone in need, not only children, stresses Annandale. He hopes that one day every council in South Africa will take this successful rehabilitation programme on board.

The next burn rehabilitation camp is being held this month, and Annandale is taking a group of 10 youngsters to the second burn survivor jamboree in Canada in August. The first burn survivor jamboree was held in Johannesburg in 2006.

For this project, however, much sponsorship is still required. To make a donation towards this, contact Harry Annandale on This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit the Burn Foundation website for more information.

Find out more about becoming an EMS volunteer through the helping hands section of the Joburg City website.

Related stories:

• EMS: preparing for every disaster
• Safer gadgets to prevent fires
• Volunteers learn to fight shack fires