First Aid · Burns & Electrical Injuries
Burns happen in the kitchen, at the campfire, and in the workshop. The first response is the same across almost all of them — and the list of things not to do is as important as what to do.
Understanding burns
Burns are classified by how deeply they damage the layers of skin and underlying tissue. The classification drives every decision — what to apply, whether to seek care, and how urgently.
Superficial (First Degree)
The epidermis — the outermost layer of skin — is damaged. The skin is red, dry, and painful. No blisters form. The most common example is a mild sunburn or a brief contact with a hot surface.
Red, dry skin at the site
Painful to touch
No blisters
Usually heals in 3–7 days without scarring
Partial Thickness (Second Degree)
Damage extends into the dermis — the deeper layer beneath the epidermis. The burn is red, blistered, wet-looking, and very painful. Common causes include scalding water, prolonged contact with heat, or a severe sunburn.
Blisters — the defining feature
Red, moist, shiny skin
Very painful — even air movement hurts
Medical evaluation often needed
Full Thickness (Third Degree)
Damage extends through the entire skin and into underlying tissue. This burn may appear white, leathery, charred, or waxy. It may be painless — nerve endings have been destroyed. Requires emergency care.
White, brown, or charred appearance
Leathery, dry, or waxy texture
Painless or very little pain — a warning sign
Call 911 — always
The first response — all thermal burns
The first goal in any thermal burn is to stop the burning process as quickly as possible. Heat trapped in tissue continues to cause damage even after the source of heat is removed. Cool running water removes that trapped heat. Everything else comes after.
Remove the heat source
Move the person away from flames, hot surfaces, steam, or whatever caused the burn. Remove jewelry, watches, and tight clothing from the area before swelling begins — these become very difficult to remove afterward and can restrict circulation.
Cool with running water — 10 to 20 minutes
Run cool (not cold, not icy) water over the burn for 10 to 20 minutes. This is the most effective single intervention available for a minor to moderate burn. It removes heat from the tissue, reduces pain, and limits the depth of injury. Shorter isn't as effective — use the full time.
Cover loosely with a clean, non-stick dressing
After cooling, cover the burn with a clean non-stick dressing, sterile gauze, or a clean cloth. Loose coverage keeps air off the raw tissue and reduces pain while protecting from contamination.
Seek care based on severity and location
Minor burns to small areas of intact skin: treat at home and monitor. Anything involving blistering, a sensitive area, or uncertainty about depth: seek medical evaluation.
What to never apply to a burn
Ice or ice water
Ice causes vasoconstriction that worsens tissue damage and can cause frostbite on skin that is already injured. Cool running water — not cold, not icy — is the correct temperature.
Butter, oil, or cooking fats
A remarkably persistent home remedy that traps heat in the tissue, increasing burn depth. Also introduces bacteria and makes subsequent wound care significantly harder.
Toothpaste or mayonnaise
Neither cools a burn effectively and both introduce contaminants. The "cooling" sensation from toothpaste is a sensory trick — it does not lower tissue temperature.
Fluffy cotton or household cloth with loose fibers
Cotton fibers adhere to raw tissue and are extremely painful to remove. Use non-stick sterile dressings, gauze, or a clean smooth cloth.
Hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol
Both damage injured tissue further and delay healing. They have no benefit on a burn wound.
Minor burns
A minor burn — brief contact with a hot pan, a small scald from steam, a light touch to a campfire grate — is painful and alarming in the moment but manageable at home with the right steps. The key is time under water and the discipline not to reach for the butter.
Cool with running water for 10–20 minutes
Start immediately. Hold the burn under a gentle stream of cool running water. The cooling is most effective in the first 20 minutes after the burn occurs. Even if some time has passed, cooling still helps.
Remove rings, watches, or tight clothing from the area
Swelling develops quickly after a burn. Remove anything constrictive near the injury before swelling makes removal difficult or cuts off circulation.
Cover with a clean, non-stick dressing
After cooling, apply a non-stick sterile dressing or clean gauze. Avoid fluffy cotton. Change the dressing daily and check for signs of infection.
Pain management
Over-the-counter ibuprofen or acetaminophen can help manage burn pain. Ibuprofen also reduces inflammation. Follow standard dosing guidelines.
When a "minor" burn needs care
Burn covers an area larger than 3 inches (about the size of your palm)
Burn is on the face, hands, feet, genitals, or over a major joint
Signs of infection develop over the following days
The person is an infant, elderly, or has diabetes or immune compromise
The sunburn problem
Sunburn is a superficial to partial-thickness burn from ultraviolet radiation. Mild sunburn — pink, warm, slightly tender skin — heals in a few days. The risks scale with severity:
Burn dressings in your kit
Standard home and group first-aid kits should include non-stick burn dressings or burn gel pads. These are specifically designed to cover burn tissue without adhering to the wound surface — a problem with ordinary gauze on blistered or raw skin.
Hydrogel burn dressings also provide cooling relief and maintain moisture, which promotes healing. They're available at most pharmacies for $5–$15.
Blistering burns
When a burn blisters, the fluid-filled dome that forms is the body's own sterile dressing over damaged tissue. It creates a moist, protected environment under the fluid while new skin regenerates beneath. Popping a blister removes that protection, exposes raw dermis to bacteria, and significantly increases infection risk and healing time.
Leave it alone. Cover it loosely. Let the body do its work.
Cool with running water for 10–20 minutes, same as any burn
Leave the blister intact — do not pop, pierce, or drain it
Cover loosely with a non-stick dressing to protect it from breaking accidentally
If the blister breaks on its own, do not remove the overlying skin if it is still loosely attached — it continues to protect the wound below
Clean the area gently and apply a fresh non-stick dressing if the blister opens
Seek medical evaluation if the burn is large, very painful, on the face, hands, feet, genitals, or showing any sign of infection
When a blistering burn always needs medical care
Infection watch on blistering burns
A burn that becomes infected looks like any infected wound — increasing redness beyond the edges, increasing pain, yellow or green drainage, swelling, and possibly fever. Burns are especially susceptible to infection because the skin barrier has been broken over a larger area than a typical wound. Check the burn area once daily during dressing changes.
Severe burns
A severe burn — deep, large, charred, white or leathery, or caused by electricity, chemicals, or an explosion — requires emergency medical care. Your role is to call for help, remove the person from ongoing danger, and provide supportive care without making things worse.
The most critical error with severe burns is applying anything to the wound. Ointments, creams, butter, sprays — all trap heat, increase infection risk, and complicate medical treatment. The emergency room team needs to see the burn as it is.
Call 911 for any of these
Burn causes trouble breathing or involves the airway
Burns on the face, hands, feet, genitals, or over major joints
Large burn — covering more than a significant portion of the body
Deep burn — charred, white, leathery, or painless appearance
Caused by electricity, chemicals, or an explosion
Affects an infant, older adult, or medically fragile person
Call 911 immediately
Do not delay calling to provide first aid first. Call, then begin care.
Remove the person from danger
Move away from flames, smoke, live electrical sources, or chemical exposure — but only if it's safe to do so. Do not enter an actively burning structure.
Do not remove clothing stuck to the skin
Clothing that has melted or adhered to a burn wound will cause significantly more damage if removed. Emergency medical personnel will handle this. Remove only clothing that is not stuck — loose items, jewelry, belts, and anything constrictive near the burn area.
Cover loosely with a clean dry cloth
Lay a clean sheet, dry cloth, or sterile dressings loosely over the burn. The goal is to keep the wound surface from contamination and reduce pain from air movement. Do not wrap tightly. Do not apply any ointment, spray, cream, or other substance.
Monitor breathing and alertness
Stay with the person and watch for signs of shock — cool pale skin, rapid weak pulse, confusion, and extreme thirst. Keep the person warm. Speak calmly. Do not give food or water. Note the time of the injury for emergency responders.
Airway burns
Burns to the airways — from inhaling flames, superheated air, or steam — can cause rapid, life-threatening swelling inside the throat and airway. The external burn may look minor while the internal airway is closing.
Warning signs of airway burn: singed nasal hair or eyebrows, blackening or soot around the nose or mouth, hoarse voice, stridor (high-pitched breathing), coughing that produces black or dark-colored material, or visible burns on the inside of the mouth.
If any of these are present, call 911 immediately. Keep the person upright if possible. Airway swelling can develop quickly over the first hour.
A note on smoke inhalation
A person who has been in a fire or enclosed smoke-filled space can sustain significant lung injury from smoke inhalation even without visible burns. Symptoms may include coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, confusion, or headache. Any exposure to significant smoke in an enclosed space warrants emergency evaluation.
Chemical burns
Chemical burns are caused by contact with acids, alkalis, bleaches, solvents, or other corrosive substances. They differ from thermal burns in one critical way: the burning process continues as long as the chemical is in contact with the skin or eyes. The first priority is removing the chemical — immediately and completely.
Do not attempt to neutralize a chemical with another substance (applying a base to an acid burn, for example) unless specifically directed by Poison Help or emergency services. This can produce an exothermic reaction that worsens the injury.
Protect yourself first
Put on gloves before touching the person if a corrosive chemical is involved. Secondary exposure is a real risk. If gloves aren't available, improvise a barrier.
Remove contaminated clothing and jewelry
Carefully cut away or remove clothing that has been exposed to the chemical. Avoid pulling it over the face. Bag contaminated clothing — it remains hazardous.
Flush with large amounts of cool running water — at least 20 minutes
Use a gentle stream of cool water. Flush continuously for at least 20 minutes. More is better. This is the single most effective intervention — physical removal of the chemical from tissue.
Call Poison Help (1-800-222-1222) or 911
Identify the chemical if possible — the container or label will help Poison Help determine the appropriate response. Most significant chemical burns require emergency medical evaluation.
Chemical splash in the eye
A chemical splash to the eye must be flushed immediately — before anything else, including calling for help. Every second the chemical remains in contact with the eye causes damage.
Common household chemical burns
Cleaning products (bleach, drain cleaners, oven cleaners), battery acid, pool chemicals, industrial solvents, and agricultural chemicals are common sources. Many burn injuries happen when mixing household chemicals that should never be combined — bleach and ammonia produce toxic chloramine gas; bleach and vinegar produce chlorine gas.
Always read labels before using cleaning products. Never mix chemicals unless specifically directed by the product instructions.
Electrical injuries
Electrical injury is deceptive. The entry and exit wounds on the skin may appear small and inconsequential. What isn't visible is the path the current traveled through the body — damaging nerves, blood vessels, and muscle along the way. The heart is particularly vulnerable: electrical current can trigger cardiac arrest immediately or in the hours following exposure.
Every electrical injury involving contact with a power source — household current, industrial equipment, downed power lines, or lightning — requires emergency medical evaluation. There are no exceptions based on how minor the visible wound looks.
The first rule — non-negotiable
Touching someone who is in contact with a live electrical source will pass current through you. You will be the second victim. Confirm the power is off or disconnect the person from the source using a non-conducting object — a dry wooden board, a dry rope, a plastic chair — before making contact.
Cut power to the source or safely separate the person
Turn off the circuit breaker, unplug the appliance, or throw the disconnect. If this isn't possible, use a dry non-conducting object to push the source away — never your hands. Do not use anything wet or metallic.
Call 911 immediately
All significant electrical injuries require emergency medical evaluation. Call as soon as the scene is safe.
Begin CPR if needed
Check for responsiveness and normal breathing. Electrical shock can cause cardiac arrest. If the person is unresponsive and not breathing normally, begin CPR and use an AED as soon as one is available. Full CPR guidance is on the Life-Threatening Emergencies page.
Cover entry and exit wounds loosely
Apply clean, dry non-stick dressings over visible burn wounds. Do not apply ointments or creams. Keep the person still and warm while waiting for help.
Monitor closely — cardiac effects can be delayed
Even after apparent recovery, cardiac arrhythmias can develop hours after an electrical injury. The person should remain under medical observation. Do not assume a conscious, alert person is fine because they feel fine immediately after the event.
Why entry and exit wounds matter
When current enters the body at one point and exits at another, everything in between — nerves, muscles, blood vessels, organs — can sustain damage from the electrical energy passing through it. The path often includes the heart.
Entry wounds are typically small, charred, and depressed. Exit wounds tend to be larger and more explosive-looking. Both may look deceptively minor compared to the internal injury.
Tell emergency responders where you believe both the entry and exit points are.
Lightning strikes
Lightning injury differs from household current in its brevity and intensity — the current passes through the body in microseconds rather than sustained contact. Cardiac arrest is the leading cause of lightning-strike death. CPR and AED use are the priority.
Unlike some rescue scenarios, lightning-strike victims do not carry an electrical charge after the strike — it is safe to touch and help them immediately.
Downed power lines
Never approach a downed power line. The ground around a downed line can be energized for a significant radius — a person may be electrocuted without direct contact. If someone else is in contact with a downed line, call 911 and wait for the utility company to cut power. Do not attempt to remove them yourself.
Continue reading
Next in the guide
Sprains, strains, suspected fractures, RICE method, splinting, protecting the neck and spine, and how to move an injured person when movement becomes unavoidable.
Injury guideOr go back
Cuts, puncture wounds, embedded objects, splinters, fishhooks, and the infection signs to watch during daily dressing changes.
Wound care guide