This viral photo of a woman with third-degree burns to her lowers arms – claimed to have been caused by using the stove after cleansing her hands with alcohol-based sanitiser – has been debunked as fake news.

The photo, allegedly taken in the island city-state of Singapore, shows a woman’s badly-burned lower arms and the post went viral on social media.

Multiple local reports said the woman burned her hands and lower arms when she applied hand sanitiser moments before turning on the stove and catching alight.

The post was accompanied with the message: “This lady here applied sanitizer on her arms and went to the kitchen to cook. The moment she turn on the stove, her hand caught fire due to the alcohol contained in the sanitizer. Do be very careful.”

Following the incident, local media quoted a Tan Dequan, head of the Medical Aesthetic Clinic, as saying that alcohol-based sanitizers can catch fire if the liquid has not completely evaporated.

The medic also suggested that hand sanitizers are not suitable for use in the kitchen.

However, the Anti Fake News Room of ‘India Today’ has looked into the viral post and reported that it was a hoax.

The report also said that the alcohol in hand sanitizers evaporates once it is rubbed over the hands and leaves nothing to catch alight.

The Anti Fake News Room added that the viral photo is of a burns victim whose forearm was used for skin graft, the surgical procedure of removing skin from one part of the body to be transplanted on another.

The ViralTab page is created by and dedicated to professional, independent freelance journalists. It is a place for us to showcase our work. When our news is sold to our media partners, we will include the link here.