Boiling water hurled during family fight puts woman in burn center, SC cops say

A lingering family dispute turned dangerous when a man threw boiling water on a relative without warning, according to investigators in South Carolina.

It happened Friday, Sept. 5, at a home in Belton, and the resulting burns were serious, the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said in a Sept. 8 news release.

“Gregory Bernard Campbell used boiling water to hurt his family member, sending the 24-year-old woman to the Augusta burn center,” the sheriff’s office said.

“They had a few disagreements leading up to the attack. However, that day it came out of the blue. He was simply standing over the stove one minute and as she walked by, proceeded to throw the water on her.”

Campbell was arrested and charged with assault and battery, officials said. He has since been released on bond.

The victim is his “great niece,” and details of her injuries were not released.

Water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit, but “hot water will burn skin at temperatures much lower than boiling point,” according to the American Burn Association says.

“It only takes 3 seconds of exposure to 140°F/60°C water to cause a burn serious enough to require surgery,” the association says.

The burn center in Augusta is known as the Joseph M. Still Burn Center, and it treats “more than 3,000 burns and wounds annually,” according to its website.

Belton is about a 105-mile drive northwest from Columbia.