Toddler receives second

By Olivia Young

Updated on: July 8, 2023 / 10:13 PM / CBS Colorado

It took less than two minutes for a baby playing at a Castle Rock playground to get second-degree burns on his feet. Now his family warns the playground isn't safe.

"It's dangerous," said Peggy Robbins, "I just want this park to be a safe place for everybody."

On June 25, Robbins took her grandchildren to Butterfield Crossing Park. The recently renovated "possibilities playground" is an inclusive playground that opened for children of all abilities in early June.

While she was occupied with another child, Robbins' 14-month-old grandson, Bran, who was visiting from California, walked onto the playground barefoot.

"One of my grandsons brought him to me and he was just screaming and crying, and I couldn't understand what was going on. So I sat down to console him and he kept grabbing his foot and I looked at the bottom of it and the skin on both feet was just completely burnt off," Robbins said.

Horrified, Robbins rushed Bran to the emergency room.

"They gave him some fentanyl and Advil and stuff like that for the pain, and he fell asleep and they wrapped his feet," Robbins said.

Bran had second-degree burns so severe, a Castle Rock police officer was called to investigate potential child abuse.

According to a police report, the officer went to the park and measured the surface temperatures. The rubber matting where Bran was injured was nearly 160 degrees Fahrenheit. The concrete sidewalk was 120 degrees, while the asphalt in the parking lot was 130. The temperature outside was 82 degrees.

The officer closed the case and ruled Bran's injuries to be an accident, one that Robbins worries will happen to another child.

"I will take responsibility for him not having shoes on, but even if he had shoes on, if he would have fallen, he would have burnt his hands or he could have burnt his face," Robbins said.

Bran was treated at the Children's Hospital burn unit, where doctors put casts on his feet for over a week.

Luckily, he's doing better now.

"We went to the hospital today, they said that it looked good that it still has a couple months of healing and he will probably not have any scarring," Robbins said.

But she feels the injury never should have happened.

"I don't understand how you can have something so dangerous at a place like this and not expect some sort of injury," Robbins said.

According to the town of Castle Rock, the material in the area that burnt Bran is poured in place rubber surfacing, sometimes referred to as PIP.

In a statement to CBS News Colorado the town said:

"Upon installation, the playground manufacturer and installer attached numerous signs to the play equipment indicating that surfaces may be hot. As temperatures rise, we remind all parents and guardians to be aware of their surroundings and the outdoor environment. Pay particular attention to young children in all play areas."

Olivia Young is a reporter at CBS News Colorado. Read her latest reports or check out her bio and send her an email.

First published on July 8, 2023 / 9:48 PM

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