Boy falls into vat of caustic soda

The nine-year-old plunged through a roof of a derelict building in Rawmarsh, Rotherham, into the container filled with a chemical once used to strip furniture.

Witnesses said the boy, named locally as Brooklyn Briggs, screamed for help and looked as though he was covered in blood.

He was initially taken to Rotherham District General Hospital on Thursday before being transferred to the burns unit at Sheffield Children's Hospital, where his condition is stable, South Yorkshire Police said.

Caustic soda, also known as sodium hydroxide, can cause severe burns, scarring and blindness.

The boy was playing football with friends in a car park when he went to retrieve the ball from the roof of a disused workshop.

He was climbing to reach the ball when the roof of the building gave way and the boy crashed through to the ground below, landing in the tank.

The boy's mother, Tracey, said she and her husband rushed to the scene after one of his friends told them about the accident.

The accident is now being investigated by the Health and Safety Executive with assistance from police.