Man Suffers 2nd Degree Burns At KL Hot Pot Place But Only Gets Meal Voucher In Return
One of the victims told SAYS that the restaurant has yet to respond to the family or offer any compensation.
By Sabrina Zainal — 11 Jan 2023, 04:08 PM
A Malaysian man's Facebook post has gone viral for detailing how he and his family were injured while having dinner at a hot pot restaurant in Cheras, Kuala Lumpur
In a post on 8 January, Facebook user Jason Chiu said he went to the restaurant with four members of his family at 8pm on 11 September last year.
They ordered four meals and after the waiter brought the food to their table, they started chatting and eating.
All was fine until the the flame for the soup kept going out. The restaurant staff had to relight the fire using gel, which was kept in a container.
By the fifth time it went out, a female staff member came by to reignite the stove, shaking the container vigorously before squeezing out the gel.
Suddenly, the family heard a loud 'bang' as the hot pot stove suddenly exploded on their table.
Screengrab showing Chiu and his family trying to put out the flames on his head and body.
Image via Jason Chiu (Facebook)Based on surveillance footage that captured the horrifying moment, smoke was rising from Chiu's head and his shirt had caught fire
In the video, the 21-year-old can be seen slapping his head and body to put out the flames while his family members frantically try to help him.
Chiu told SAYS that he suffered from second-degree burns on his face, back, and left hand.
"The doctor said that I would have to recuperate for about a month. I had to go to the hospital every three days to get the wounds checked," he said.
His entire family suffered various injuries, but none were as severe as Chiu's.
"The doctor said it will take at least a year to recover and remove the scars. The scars on my face may not be completely removed," he lamented.
Besides the physical wounds, Chiu said he and his family are also traumatised from the ordeal, and can not look at restaurants that use solid alcohol the same again.
After some back and forth with the restaurant, the family was denied their claim for compensation
"They also offered a completely unreasonable compensation package for us to accept," he said, adding that the restaurant's counter proposal was to give the victims a RM2,000 in cash and a RM1,000 store voucher.
"Let's ask everyone, would you dare to go there again for dinner? My medical fee is close to RM30,000 and my school tuition fee is RM10,000 for one month's absence. [I lost] part-time work amounting to RM5,000, and RM500 for my clothes."
"We don't want money, we just want justice."
As of this writing, the restaurant has yet to compensate Chiu and his family for the mishap that has left them permanently scarred.
The university student told SAYS that the restaurant's legal team has only confirmed that they have received the family's letter to claim compensation. They have until 17 January to respond.
Meanwhile, the restaurant's Facebook page has since been taken down.
Jason's injured left hand when receiving treatment at the hospital in September 2022 (left) and his hand after recovery (right) on 11 January 2023.
Image via Jason Chiu (Provided to SAYS)