Published Friday, 01 July 2011
Tyler Hutchinson has suffered burns to the back of his head and neck, but some kind of black plastic has also melted into the wounds - causing him extreme pain.
"He's in serious pain - every time you lift the black stuff, it's just pulling layers and layers of skin," his dad Trevor explained.
"They've wrapped it up again and they're leaving it until Tuesday, but the doctors are baffled at the minute as to how they're going to remove it.
"I've been up another whole night with him - he can't get to sleep or anything."
It's understood Tyler was playing with a friend prior to the incident on Wednesday afternoon and they went to the site of the main bonfire in the Ballysally estate for a few minutes.
A group of teenagers, aged between 12 and 14, approached the two boys and one pushed Tyler in the chest, causing him to fall backwards into a smaller fire beside the main bonfire.
The teenagers - who were unknown to Tyler - ran off, leaving the little boy's eight-year-old friend to pull him out of the flames.
"If his clothes had caught fire, they still would have ran away and left him and he could have burned to death," his dad said.
As well as suffering painful injuries, Tyler has been left badly shaken by what happened.
His dad added: "He's absolutely terrified - he says he doesn't even want to go back out into the street."
Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the seven-year-old's injuries and have appealed for witnesses to contact them.
Local Alliance councillor and social worker Yvonne Boyle expressed her shock at what she called a "deplorable attack" on the young boy.
"I am very concerned about the actions and intentions of the youths who carried out this attack," she said. "I hope that this boy is able to get over what must have been a traumatic incident and will be able to make a recovery from his injuries.
"We must do more to teach our children and young people the dangers of lit fires and the need to be safe around them."