Find a burn injury lawyer in Austin: care, fire investigators and deadlines
Serious burns in Austin go to Dell Seton, which Ascension lists as a Level I Trauma Center and Burn Center. After a fire, the Austin Fire Marshal's Office is responsible for finding the cause. Texas gives you 2 years to sue, and a city claim needs a letter in 45 days.
Last checked November 9, 2026 · Official sources (40)
Where do serious burn patients go in Austin?
Dell Seton Medical Center at The University of Texas, listed by Ascension as a Level I Trauma Center, Burn Center and Comprehensive Stroke Center. It is also the only adult Level I trauma center in the 11-county region. For children, Dell Children's is the only children's hospital in Central Texas with a Level I trauma designation.
Call 911 for burns from chemicals or electricity; in Austin, Dell Seton is the listed Burn Center. Early care matters: it helps prevent scarring, disability and deformity. Watch for pus, fever, more pain or red streaks, which signal infection.
How can you tell how serious a burn is?
| Type | What it looks like | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Partial thickness | Both skin layers, with blistering | Hands, feet, face, groin, buttocks or a major joint make it a major burn |
| Full thickness | Deep skin layers, white or blackened, may be numb | The most serious burns can be painless |
| Airway burn | From smoke, steam, hot air or chemical fumes | Treat as an emergency |
Contracture is scarring that limits movement. In an Austin claim, it is a long-term harm your records should describe.
Who investigates a fire or explosion in Austin?
Inside the city, the Austin Fire Marshal's Office is responsible for fire cause determination. In unincorporated Travis County, Fire/Arson Investigators look into fires and explosions. Ask for the incident number early. A cause finding can matter for both an insurance claim and a lawsuit.
Batteries are one Austin concern. Austin Resource Recovery says they do not belong in curbside trash, recycling or compost carts. The city adopted the 2024 International Fire Code with local changes effective July 10, 2025, and it requires a permit for lithium battery storage of 15 cubic feet or more.
Can you sue over a scald, heater or product fire in Austin?
Sometimes. In Austin, where most homes are rented, a water heater set to 140 degrees can burn skin in six seconds, and at 130 degrees in thirty. Faulty heaters, furnaces and industrial equipment are known causes of burns.
- For a defective product, Texas requires you to prove a safer alternative design.
- Claims generally end 15 years after the defendant sold the product.
- A store that did not make the product is usually not liable unless an exception applies.
- Texas caps exemplary damages and requires clear and convincing proof of gross negligence, fraud or malice.
Product complaints can also go to the Consumer Product Safety Commission's SaferProducts.gov. A report is not a recall.
What if you were burned at work in Austin?
Tell your employer within 30 days and file a comp claim within one year. For a jobsite safety concern, call OSHA's Austin Area Office at (512) 374-0271, on La Posada Dr., Suite 375. An employer must report an in-patient hospitalization within 24 hours. In 2024, 24% of Texas employers carried no workers' comp.
What are the deadlines for a burn injury claim in Austin?
- Lawsuit against a private party: generally 2 years.
- Child under 18: time does not count while a minor.
- City of Austin: a claim letter in 45 days to P.O. Box 1546 or [email protected].
- Other governments: 6 months.
If your share of the blame passes 50 percent, Texas bars any recovery. A hospital's lien rule turns on admission within 72 hours.
Questions
How hot is too hot for tap water?
Six seconds at 140 degrees or thirty seconds at 130 degrees can burn skin. Check your water heater setting, and tell your landlord in writing if it is set too high.
Do I need a lawyer for a minor burn?
Not always. Keep the records, see an Austin doctor, and note the 2-year deadline.
Does a burn that scars change the claim?
It can add disfigurement as a damage category in Texas.
Burn injury in Austin? See if you are owed money.
A free case review. $0 upfront. No fee unless you win.
See if I’m owed moneySources (40)
- Ascension, Dell Seton Medical Center Emergency, checked 2026-11-09. “Level I Trauma Center, Burn Center and Comprehensive Stroke Center”
- Austin Fire, Fire Marshal's Office, checked 2026-11-09. “The Fire Marshal's Office is responsible for the protection of life and property through code enforcement, plans review, fire inspections, and fire cause determination.”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003, checked 2026-11-08. “not later than two years after the day the cause of action accrues”
- City of Austin, File a Claim, checked 2026-11-08. “You must send this letter within 45 days of the incident.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “The burn is caused by chemicals or electricity.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “The most serious burns can be painless.”
- Travis County Fire Marshal, Investigations, checked 2026-11-09. “responsible for investigating fires and explosions in the unincorporated areas of Travis County”
- U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, checked 2026-11-09. “Burns will also occur with a six-second exposure to 140 degree water or with a thirty second exposure to 130 degree water.”
- U.S. Census Bureau, QuickFacts: Austin city, Texas, checked 2026-11-09. “Owner-occupied housing unit rate, 2020-2024 | 43.4%”
- Dell Medical School, Division of Emergency Medicine, checked 2026-11-09. “It is the only adult Level I Trauma Center in the 11-county Central Texas region.”
- Dell Children's Medical Center, Pediatric trauma care, checked 2026-11-09. “is the only children’s hospital in Central Texas with a Level I Trauma Center designation by the American College of Surgeons.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Major burns need urgent medical care. This can help prevent scarring, disability, and deformity.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Red streaks spreading from the burn”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Partial-thickness burns (formerly known as second-degree burns) affect both the outer and underlying layer of skin.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Second-degree burns on the hands, feet, face, groin, buttocks, or over a major joint”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Full-thickness burns (formerly known as third-degree burns) affect the deep layers of skin.”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “You can also burn your airways if you breathe in smoke, steam, superheated air, or chemical fumes”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Scarring after traumatic injury or burns”
- Austin Resource Recovery, Battery and Solar Panel Recycling, checked 2026-11-09. “Keep batteries out of your curbside trash, recycling and composting carts!”
- Austin Fire, Fire Marshal's Office, checked 2026-11-09. “Effective July 10, 2025, the City of Austin adopted the 2024 edition of the International Fire Code (IFC) with local amendments.”
- Austin Fire Department, 2024 International Fire Code briefing, checked 2026-11-09. “Permit required for lithium battery storage ≥15 ft³”
- MedlinePlus (NIH), checked 2026-11-09. “Faulty space heaters, furnaces, or industrial equipment”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code 82.005, checked 2026-11-09. “there was a safer alternative design”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code 16.012, checked 2026-11-09. “before the end of 15 years after the date of the sale of the product by the defendant”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code 82.003, checked 2026-11-09. “A seller that did not manufacture a product is not liable for harm caused to the claimant by that product unless the claimant proves”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.008, checked 2026-11-09. “two times the amount of economic damages; plus (B) an amount equal to any noneconomic damages found by the jury, not to exceed $750,000; or (2) $200,000”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.003, checked 2026-11-09. “exemplary damages may be awarded only if the claimant proves by clear and convincing evidence”
- CPSC, checked 2026-11-09. “does not mean that the Commission will conclude automatically that a corrective action is necessary”
- Tex. Lab. Code § 409.001(a), checked 2026-11-08. “shall notify the employer of the employee of an injury not later than the 30th day after the date on which: (1) the injury occurs;”
- Tex. Lab. Code § 409.003, checked 2026-11-08. “shall file with the division a claim for compensation for an injury not later than one year after the date on which: (1) the injury occurred;”
- OSHA, Texas area offices, checked 2026-11-08. “(512) 374-0271”
- OSHA, Texas area offices, checked 2026-11-08. “1033 La Posada Dr., Suite 375 Austin, TX 78752-3832”
- OSHA, checked 2026-11-09. “An in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss must be reported within 24 hours.”
- Texas Department of Insurance, 2024 Biennial Report snapshot, checked 2026-11-08. “In 2024, the percentage of employers that were non-subscribers was the lowest since 2016, at 24%”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.001, checked 2026-11-08. “the time of the disability is not included in a limitations period”
- City of Austin, File a Claim, checked 2026-11-08. “City of Austin Law Department - Claims P.O. Box 1546 Austin, TX 78767-1546”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 101.101, checked 2026-11-08. “not later than six months after the day that the incident giving rise to the claim occurred”
- Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code 33.001, checked 2026-11-09. “a claimant may not recover damages if his percentage of responsibility is greater than 50 percent”
- Tex. Prop. Code § 55.002, checked 2026-11-09. “For the lien to attach, the individual must be admitted to a hospital not later than 72 hours after the accident.”
- Texas Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 41.001(12), checked 2026-11-09. “physical pain and suffering, mental or emotional pain or anguish, loss of consortium, disfigurement, physical impairment”