Officials issue warnings and urge parents to talk to children after 9-year-old burns 70% of his body in viral 'fire challenge'

Fire Chief Roman Nelson and police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick appeared together in a video to warn parents and children about the dangerous online 'fire challenge,' in which participants douse themselves in accelerant, set themselves alight and race to put out the flames. Nelson said the unnamed New Orleans boy, 9, is in 'unbearable pain' following the stunt, which left him with burns to over 70% of his body. Participants typically use household products such as isopropyl alcohol or acetone. Nelson urged parents to talk to their children about the trend.

Kirkpatrick told children: 'It is not fun, and it is not funny.'

She urged children to resist peer pressure: 'Your life is not worth it.'

In March, a Pennsylvania teenager was intubated after a 'fire-breathing' challenge went wrong.