Hairdresser, 21, is left with severe facial burns after a night of passion turned into disaster

A hairdresser has told how a night of heated passion ended in disaster after a pillow was set alight by a romantic bedroom candle – leaving her with severe facial burns. 

Lucy Edwards, 21, lit a candle near the bed in an attempt to create a seductive atmosphere for a night away in Wales with her boyfriend Tom Blizard, 27.

But their plans for a romantic frisson went up in flames when a pillow caught fire forcing the pair to run around the room trying to put out the blaze.

Tom grabbed the pillow to throw it out the room but accidentally collided with Lucy’s face, leaving her with burns on her eyelid, cheek, lip and nose, she said.

And as if things couldn’t get any worse, the panicked boyfriend then ran into a door in the bathroom while trying to extinguish the flames, knocking himself out. 

Tom grabbed the pillow to throw it out the room, but accidentally collided with Lucy's face, leave her with burns on her eyelid, cheek, lip and nose, she said

Lucy Edwards, 21, lit a candle near the bed in an attempt to create a seductive atmosphere for a night in with her boyfriend Tom Blizard, 27. But their bedroom antics were interrupted when a pillow caught fire forcing the pair to run around the room trying to put out the blaze

Lucy Edwards, 21, lit a candle near the bed in an attempt to create a seductive atmosphere for a night in with her boyfriend Tom Blizard, 27

Lucy Edwards, 21, lit a candle near the bed in an attempt to create a seductive atmosphere for a night in with her boyfriend Tom Blizard, 27

Lucy was given painkillers and antibiotics in hospital, had to take three weeks off work, and has been left with some small scars.

The hairdresser from Oxford said: ‘The evening definitely didn’t go to plan but at least it’s given me a funny story to tell my clients in the salon.

‘I was just trying to make the bedroom feel romantic, and candles are always an easy way of doing that.

‘We both totally panicked when we realised the pillow was on fire, leaping off the bed, and somehow the pillow ended up on my face with Tom passed out on the floor.

‘When I went to the hospital, the doctors said that my burns were so extensive that I could need plastic surgery as a result – it was that bad.’ 

The disastrous evening took place on holiday in an Airbnb on the beach at Calwell Bay in Mumbles, Wales on 14 October 2016. 

The burnt pillow

The guilty candle

Lucy was given painkillers and antibiotics in hospital, had to take three weeks off work, and has been left with some small scars

Lucy - who has only now got the guts to talk about the ordeal - booked the romantic excursion to celebrate Tom's 25th birthday. It was the same beach the landscaper had asked her to be his girlfriend three years before

Lucy – who has only now got the guts to talk about the ordeal – booked the romantic excursion to celebrate Tom’s 25th birthday. It was the same beach the landscaper had asked her to be his girlfriend three years before

Lucy – who has only now got the guts to talk about the ordeal – booked the romantic excursion to celebrate Tom’s 25th birthday.

It was the same beach the landscaper had asked her to be his girlfriend three years before.

The couple had only been staying at the beach apartment for three days when the accident happened.

Lucy said: ‘We’d just finished watching a movie and Tom went to jump in the shower.

‘I got dressed up in some sexy lingerie I’d brought with me for his birthday and tried to make the bedroom feel romantic as he showered.

‘There was a candle in the kitchen so I brought it into the bedroom and put it on the bedside table.

‘We started to get intimate on the bed and things were going to plan until we heard this weird crackling right by my head and realised the pillow had caught fire.

‘We both jumped off of the bed, and I tried to run away at the same time as Tom grabbed the pillow to throw it out of harm’s way.

‘In a total moment of mayhem, we ended up colliding and Tom accidentally slammed the burning pillow into my face.

The fire melted the cushion cover and the pillow residue, melted plastic fibres and outer lining stuck like hot glue to Lucy's face, she said

The fire melted the cushion cover and the pillow residue, melted plastic fibres and outer lining stuck like hot glue to Lucy’s face, she said

Lucy's burns following the incident

Lucy's burns following the incident

The disastrous evening took place on holiday in an Airbnb on the beach at Calwell Bay in Mumbles, Wales on 14 October 2016. Lucy – who has only now got the guts to talk about the ordeal – booked the romantic excursion to celebrate Tom’s 25th birthday

‘As the pillow hit me, I squealed and went into total shock as the burning sensation hit me, just repeating Tom’s name over and over again quietly as if I was hyperventilating.

‘Tom had run out of the room with the pillow to put the fire out, and it felt like I’d been calling his name for ages with no answer when I realised I had to do something myself.’

The fire melted the cushion cover and the pillow residue, melted plastic fibres and outer lining stuck like hot glue to Lucy’s face, she said.

Blinded and still in her lingerie, Lucy guided herself to the bathroom with her hands on the walls, and felt hard lumps of dried plastic on her eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she bravely pulled it off and opened her eyes, and spotted an unconscious Tom lying on the floor.

Lucy said: ‘I started screaming for him until he finally started to stir.

‘After a few minutes of groaning and trying to stand up, I saw a huge lump in the middle of Tom’s head and realised he must have inhaled so much smoke or been blinded by the fumes and he ran into the cupboard door which had been left slightly open.

‘As soon as he was steady on his feet, Tom ran into the bathroom and started to assess my burns.

‘In that moment, we both just panicked, we didn’t know what to do or who to call, so naturally, I FaceTimed my poor mum.’

She used cotton wool to put cold water on her face, but said it stuck to her skin, and the pair cut their trip short to drive two hours to Tom’s dad’s house in in Wallingford, Berkshire.

Hoping to avoid the embarrassment of going to the hospital and explaining the burns, Lucy applied cream to her face and went to bed.

But two days after the painful incident, Lucy woke up to find her wounds were infected.

Lucy said: ‘When we got to Tom’s house, my skin just looked really red and although it was very sore, I just hoped we could sort it out at home.

‘Two days later, I woke up at Tom’s house and his mum took one look at me and told me she was taking me to the doctors.

‘I looked in the mirror and felt sick – my face was all lumpy and tight, the burns had blistered up and with a deep red and purple hue all over them, they were clearly infected.

‘The doctors sent me to the burns unit immediately, and the hospital were totally shocked by the state of my face.

‘They told me I should have come in as soon as it happened, and that my face was so damaged that I could need plastic surgery.

‘Hearing that absolutely terrified me, but luckily the doctors were able to pull off all the scabbed areas, draining my blisters and cleaning them to save my face.

‘After relentless testing and cleaning with multiple days in and out of hospital, I was sent home with antibiotics for the worst of the skin, incredibly strong painkillers and a skin care regime.’

Lucy was signed off of work for three weeks as exposure to chemicals in the salon would have been too dangerous for her recovery.

Thankfully, she did not require plastic surgery and a few tiny marks on her face are all she has to remember the horrible evening.

Miraculously, the fiery incident didn’t put out the fire for Lucy and Tom’s relationship – the couple are still together – but haven’t been on holiday since.

Lucy said: ‘Tom felt so guilty for what happened, he kept apologising for weeks and still feels bad about it now.

‘I don’t blame him at all, it was a total freak accident, but I think it’s scared him off holidays for good as we haven’t been away since!

‘We’ve not told many people about what actually happened – we lied to nearly everyone and just said we were relaxing after dinner when the pillow caught fire.

‘I was too embarrassed to admit I was in my lingerie and what we were doing when it happened, but I’ve told a few hairdressing clients down the salon about it and they all said it was too funny not to share and I guess everybody will know now!

‘Candles are officially banned from anywhere near the bedroom now and I’ll definitely not be using actual fire to set the mood ever again!’

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