Condition of Teenager Burned in Experiment Is Upgraded

The condition of the Santa Clarita teenager severely burned in a botched high school physics experiment has been upgraded from critical to serious after surgery Friday.

Christopher James, 17, also spoke last week for the first time since he was hospitalized, said Sherman Oaks Hospital spokesman Larry Weinberg.

During Friday’s surgery, grafts taken from Christopher’s back were used to cover the burned areas of his chest--the last remaining area of his body requiring grafting, Weinberg said. With the grafted skin covering Christopher’s injured areas, the risk of fatal infection is reduced, he added.

“He is on his way out of the woods, if not completely out,” Weinberg said.

Christopher, of Stevenson Ranch, suffered third-degree burns over 35% of his body in the Nov. 25 experiment at William S. Hart High School in Newhall.

Nolan LeMar, 17, was also injured, with second-degree burns over 12% of his body. Nolan, of Castaic, was released from the hospital’s Grossman Burn Center last Sunday.

Since the accident, Christopher has undergone several surgeries to graft skin to his face, ears, neck, arms and hands. On Friday, using a laryngoscope, doctors also found that the condition of the teenager’s vocal cords had improved, Weinberg said. Christopher’s vocal cords were burned by inhaling a cloud of flaming methanol during the experiment.

Next week, Christopher will have an operation to repair the skin grafts, Weinberg said. The procedure will be the last major surgery for the teenager in this phase of recovery before he begins occupational and physical therapy, he said.