Man says son was seriously burned when football players told to bear crawl on hot turf

LANCASTER COUNTY, S.C. — A father told Channel 9 his son got second and third-degree burns on his hands at his Lancaster County high school. District officials said that an employee is on administrative leave with pay while officials investigate. The district did not confirm the title, location, or employee’s identifying information with Channel 9.

However, the dad said his son, Cade Poynor, got burns on his hands after a weightlifting coach forced him and other football players to do bear crawls across the Buford High School football field as punishment.

“That day, if I remember, it was between 85 and 90 degrees,” Lance Poynor said. “And if it’s that hot, that turf is going to be a lot hotter than that.”

He said his son showed the coach his injuries and asked to see a doctor.

“He said they weren’t going to see the medical doctor. They would lift weights, work the pain out of their hands,” Poynor said.

The parent said Cade eventually went to a doctor and was diagnosed with second and third-degree burns. The injuries were so serious he was forced to sit out of a team scrimmage last weekend.

“For him to go home and come in in that condition kind of upset me,” Poynor said.

On Friday, a spokesperson for the district said the employee is on administrative leave while leaders investigate. They would not comment further.

“Lancaster County School District cannot comment further at this time due to this being an ongoing investigation into a personnel matter,” the district said in a statement to Channel 9.

“If we can’t trust him around our kids, he really doesn’t need to be an authority figure for our kids,” Poynor said.

The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office says it was called to investigate the case and talked with students and their parents. The sheriff’s office said investigators met with prosecutors and the solicitor’s office to discuss the results, and they agreed that no criminal laws were violated.

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