A Texas family is seeking answers after their 5-year-old son allegedly suffered second-degree burns from a water fountain at school, according to PEOPLE. In a statement from civil rights attorney Ben Crump, the incident occurred on May 2 at Lakeview Elementary School in El Paso, and the child, identified only as D’Marion, was in kindergarten at the time.

Crump, who is representing the family, stated that D’Marion had asked a teacher for water, and after being permitted to use the hallway fountain, he sustained severe burns. 

“The water was so hot it caused second-degree burns to his face, lips, mouth, tongue, and throat,” Crump wrote in a press release. He added that the child had to be hospitalized and required a feeding tube.

Photos shared by Crump show visible burns around the child’s mouth and face. He also claimed that school staff initially failed to seek medical help, instead calling the child’s grandmother to pick him up. 

“The school did not call 911. They did not call an ambulance. They called the grandmother and said ‘he had a fall,’” Crump alleged.

In a statement to People, the Socorro Independent School District said it “cannot share information about individual students or employees,” but confirmed the incident is under investigation. “District leaders are aware of the allegations and have taken immediate action to investigate the situation,” the statement read.

Crump is now demanding accountability from the district. “This is a horrific incident that should have never happened,” he wrote.

As of now, it remains unclear how the water reached such extreme temperatures or if the fountain had a history of malfunctioning. The investigation is ongoing, and no charges or lawsuits have been filed as of June 2025.