It only takes a matter of seconds before a happy Halloween can turn deadly. Do you know if your child's costume is fire resistant?

As the Holloween shopping season gets underway, we went shopping for answers.

We bought two different costumes and a witch hat, all three made of different materials. But, would they burn?

We put them to the test with the help of Columbia County firefighter, Danny Kuhlman.

It didn't long at all for a Batman costume to catch fire.

"This child would be in the burn center with second and third degree burns to the left arm and left side of the chest, just in 30 seconds," Kuhlman said.

Next, we put a plastic fireman's jacket to the test. It didn't catch fire, but instead started to melt.

"It melts just like the nylon and polyester and if it gets on your skin it's going to burn you," Kuhlman said.

A nylon witch hat didn't a stand a chance against the lighter. It also melted in just a matter of seconds.

"It actually turns into liquid and it's dripping. If you got that on you, it would continue to burn your skin. One of those drops of melted nylon will burn your skin even after you get it off. It just sticks to you like glue," Kuhlman said.

Fire experts say look closely for costumes that are flame retardant or fire retardant.