Badly burnt teen fighting for his life

A Tauranga teenager with critical burns to half his body is in Auckland's Middlemore Hospital, where doctors put him into a coma to give him the best chance of recovery.

The 16-year-old was burnt with an accelerant early today. He was taken to Tauranga Hospital for initial treatment then airlifted to the burns critical care unit at Middlemore.

Paramedics were called to a house in suburban Greerton about 3am, where the teenager was reported to be on fire. His family had extinguished the flames when paramedics arrived.

Detective Sergeant Darryl Brazier from Tauranga CIB said the teenager was critically ill.

"He has got burns to about 50 per cent of his body. He is in an induced coma and was in a critical condition when they airlifted him out."

Serious burns victims often succumbed to shock, Mr Brazier said.

Police were investigating how the teenager was doused with accelerant.

Nobody else was being sought in relation to the incident.

- NZPA