A 15-year-old boy is fighting for his life after Orange County deputies said he doused himself in rubbing alcohol and told his friends to "light him up."

The dare, part of a risky viral game known as the "fire challenge," left Robert Seals in critical condition with serious burns on his arms and chest.

The incident happened Monday evening on Forestdale Avenue, in Pine Hills. Deputies said Robert and two friends were emulating something they had seen online.

According to the Orange County Sheriff's Office, Robert admitted he was attempting a social media "fire challenge," in which one person pours a flammable liquid on their body and lights the liquid on fire.

  • WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGE — The teen's family shared a photo (included below ▼) of the boy in the hospital with severe burns on his face and neck. His family wants to make the community aware and discourage this from happening again.

"I was making dinner and I heard screaming, 'Help me. Help me, I'm on fire,'" said neighbor Esther Ruiz. "We come outside, and you see him running and he's literally lit on fire."

In this case, deputies said Robert used rubbing alcohol on his clothing and dared his friends to light a match, which one of them did.

"We saw him get in the ambulance," Ruiz said. "His skin was peeling off his arms. His chest was already turning white. I mean, he was just screaming."

"I was screaming," said Lisa Oliphant, Robert's aunt, recalling what she called the horrific sight of her nephew running down Forestdale Avenue engulfed in flames. "I was steady, telling him, 'Your shirt is on fire. Take your shirt off,' because he was burning from the back."

Deputies said Robert attempted to "stop, drop and roll." When that didn't work, family members said they were able to put out the fire, but Robert ended up with burns to over 27 percent of his body.

"Severely burned from his eyes down," Oliphant said.

Robert was rushed Monday evening to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando. From there, he was flown Tuesday afternoon to Shriners Hospitals' burn center in Cincinnati.

Now, Robert's family said they are just hoping and praying for the best.

At Arnold Palmer Hospital, doctors learned Robert's injuries were more extensive than first thought.

"He started swelling in the neck," Oliphant said. "They don't know whether he inhaled fire as well, so they got him sedated."

After the teen was flown to Cincinnati, relatives gathered at Robert's home, still trying to figure out why he would do this.

"He said he was out here looking at Facebook, and Robert lit himself and then put it out," said Gregory Thomas, the teen's great-uncle. "Then he squirted more on himself and said, 'Light it. Light it. Light it.'"

Investigators said the "fire challenge" is no game and is very dangerous.

The "fire challenge" spiked in popularity about a year ago. Since then, hundreds of videos have been posted online showing young people taking the so-called challenge, along with "fire challenge gone bad" compilation videos.

In most of the videos, the person participating usually becomes panicked and typically turns on a shower or jumps into a pool to put out the flames.

The "fire challenge" is similar to other online dare videos, like the "cinnamon challenge," in which people attempt to eat a spoonful of cinnamon and usually end up coughing and in desperate need of water. There's also the "salt and ice challenge," in which people pour salt on their skin and then rub ice over it, which burns the skin.

Most of these challenges are dangerous, and all for just an attempt to get a lot of views on social media.

Deputies said the boy's friends stayed and talked with investigators. No charges were immediately filed, but the sheriff's office said it was exploring possible charges of culpable negligence. The case would be forwarded to the State Attorney's Office for further review.

UPDATE: The Orange County Sheriff's Office issued a correction Tuesday to its previous report of the victim's age, from 16 to 15.


WARNING: Graphic Image Below

Robert Seals, 15, is seriously burned and in critical condition Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2015, after Orange County deputies say he poured rubbing alcohol on himself and dared his friends to light him on fire Monday evening. (Seals Family)