Around 40 Chinese primary school children suffered burns and severe damage to their eyes, face and neck after a teacher forgot to turn off a UV disinfection lamp.

The unsuspecting pupils of a primary school in Tianjin, some 30 minutes outside Beijing, spent the whole day under ultraviolet lights on Monday. That very evening the kids felt the damaging effect of UV exposure and some 36 out of 48 students had to be rushed to the emergency room. Most of the kids suffered intense eye pain, nausea and vomiting, while open parts of their body – face and neck – were severely burned.

READ MORE: Chinese public irate as police refuse to investigate man for molesting 5yo daughter in viral video

The incident has gone viral on Chinese social media, with many people sharing the news and a picture of a child, apparently affected by the UV rays, with bandaged eyes and head. A video also emerged online purportedly showing a group of parents emotionally confronting the staff at the school.

Local authorities are currently investigating the incident. It is understood that a teacher at Dagang English Experimental Primary School forgot to switch off the disinfection lamp in the classroom early in the morning, around 7:40am. The light was not switched off until 4.45pm, when another teacher discovered it had been left on by mistake.

Some parents reportedly noticed their young ones’ “eyelids and eyeballs were already very red” as they came home from school that day. Now parents fear that their children may face health problems in future, as over-exposure of skin to UV can cause a higher risk of cancer.

Think your friends would be interested? Share this story!