A Sarnia realtor who suffered second and third degree burns to 30 per cent of her body during a cooking accident, is stressing the importance of safety to others.
Noelle Frank was cooking pasta in May of 2017 when the pot of boiling water tipped over, and spilled down her legs.
She said telling her story is difficult but worth sharing, even if it saves one person from having a similar accident.
"Some people in the community will just come up to me and say 'since I've heard your story, whenever I'm cooking I think of you and tell my kids to stay away from the stove,'" said Frank. "Just hearing that makes me think that I want to do this more, share my story and educate people. It's just such a horrible, traumatic experience and the healing goes for years after the initial injury."
Frank said five years after her accident, she still has long term side effects.
"A long term side effect is that I have trouble with thermoregulation because my sweat glands were destroyed," she said. "So if I wanted to go ice skating, for example, I can't be out in the cold for very long because my skin just swells right up and it's very painful."
She said the community has been an amazing source of support, including the Sarnia Fire and Rescue Service.
"I try to be a positive advocate, and I've just been so incredibly lucky to have had support throughout the community during my recovery. For many, the psychological and emotional effects from a severe burn can be debilitating."
Some kitchen safety tips include using the back burners on the stove, keeping pot handles turned inward, using short appliance cords, and taking special care around hot liquids.
February 6 to 12 is National Burn Awareness Week.
You can keep up with Noelle's story and view more safety tips by visiting her Facebook page.
