Footage, which Daily Express has deemed too graphic to publish, shows the youngster engulfed in flames moments after the horror. It is believed he has suffered serious burns to the majority of his body.

       Emergency services dashed to the scene in Ballysillan, Belfast, Northern Ireland.

       A Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) spokesperson said: "The NIFRS attended the incident in the early hours of this morning and administered first aid to the casualty until paramedics from the ambulance service arrived to support him."

       Police are appealing for witnesses.

       Superintendent Henry said: “Police received a report at around 00:30am that a male had sustained burn injuries. As a result of the incident, he sustained burns to his face and body. He remains in hospital for his injuries.

       “Our enquiries are continuing to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident. We are aware that there were a number of people in the area at the time of the incident, so we would appeal to them to come forward to assist with our enquiries."

       The police officer continued: "We are also aware of social media footage that has been posted online in relation to this incident. We would ask that it is not shared, but to contact police with any information they might have.

       “We would ask that anyone with any information in relation to the incident, should contact police on 101 quoting reference number 76 12/07/21. You can also submit a report online using our non-emergency reporting form via http://www.psni.police.uk/makeareport/. You can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at http://crimestoppers-uk.org/."

       Forty of the calls NIFRS received across the weekend were bonfire-related. That equates to more than one quarter of all calls during that period.