Amid this Coronavirus outbreak, health experts have been advising everyone to clean hand properly using soap and water, and also to apply hand sanitizers as a precaution against coronavirus infection. However, a social media post is going viral with the claim that one can catch fire due to the sanitizer as it contains a high amount of alcohol.

A Facebook user shared image of a burnt hand with a caption, "This lady here applied sanitizer on her arms and went to the kitchen to cook. The moment she turned on the stove, her hand caught fire due to the alcohol contained in the sanitizer. Please do not apply sanitizer when you are at home! Wash your hands with water/handwash/soap. We can get Hibiscrub from our suppliers which is an Anti-Microbial Wash used in hospitals before surgery. This is very effective in killing Bacteria and Viruses. Contact Peterlee Pharmacy on 0191 586 4444. Please be careful and Share this to your loved ones."

The same post is doing rounds on Twitter with similar claims. 

The truth behind the claim 

In our investigation, we found that the viral post is a hoax. Sanitizer could not catch fire because the alcohol in hand sanitizers evaporates completely once rubbed over the hands and leaves nothing to catch fire.

As per an article by Dr. Adrain Wong on Techarp, the picture shared is of a lady who had developed skin grafts after burning her hand. The picture was posted on a skin graft donor site. Skin grafting is a surgical procedure that involves removing the skin from one part of the body and transplanting it to another.

The viral photograph is of a burn victim whose forearm was harvested for skin grafts. One can clearly see the sharp edges on her forearm which can never be the result of an actual burn.

In conclusion, the viral image is not of a woman whose hands caught fire while she was putting on the stove after applying hand sanitizer. In reality, alcohol-based hand sanitizers do not catch fire as the alcohol evaporates completely once applied on the hands.