The mum of a baby boy who was burned when a stranger allegedly poured a flask of hot coffee onto him in a Brisbane park says she is haunted by his screams.

The woman and her nine-month-old were on a picnic at Hanlon Park, Stones Corner, on Tuesday when a man approached.

The mum’s friend, Zara Mazza, told Network Ten’s The Project she looked up to see the stranger standing above the infant boy.

“This man was standing above him, behind him, and poured a Thermos of hot coffee over him. He just started screaming,” she said on Wednesday night.

Mazza said she tried to chase the man but he was “very fast”. She raced back to her friend and the baby, as she heard the mum screaming ‘It’s hot, it’s hot coffee’.

“I ran back, and as I ran back picked up my water bottle and dumped it over him,” she said.

“I removed him from his mum and we laid him down on the picnic rug and we peeled his clothes away, which revealed the peeling of his skin, his skin had started to blister.”

A nurse who lived nearby also heard the baby’s screams and came to help. She took the family to her apartment to shower the boy before an ambulance arrived soon afterwards.

The child has since had surgery after suffering burns to his face and chest.

The nine-month-old baby is recovering in hospital after undergoing burns surgery. Photo: Nine Network

“It’s torture. I am supposed to be his protector and I couldn’t protect him,” the mother told the Nine Network on Wednesday night.

“I’m just having flashbacks all the time about what happened.”

The woman, who cannot be identified under laws protecting child victims of crime, posted on social media that she was traumatised by the event.

“I wish he poured the hot coffee all over me and not my boy,” she said.

“I will never be able to go out with my boy again and let him go have fun without having a panic attack.

“He did not deserve this. No one does.

“The screams from my boy are currently haunting me as I lay here in bed next to him post-surgery not being able to sleep.”

She told Nine it was not known whether the burns would leave scars.

The baby remains in a stable condition in a Brisbane hospital.

Police released more images on Thursday morning of the man who may be able to assist their investigation.

Police want to speak to this man in relation to the attack. Photo: Queensland Police

He is described as 30-40 years old, with tanned skin. He was wearing a black hat, glasses, a shirt and shorts.

Footage was released on Wednesday of the alleged attacker running away from the park and down the street.

Police described it as a deliberate and unprovoked attack.

“It is callous and cowardly,” Detective Inspector Paul Dalton said on Wednesday.

“Going to a park on a beautiful winter’s day in Brisbane, enjoying your time … to be attacked like this and approached like this, it must be terrifying.

“In 35 years of being a police officer, I’ve never come across a job where a child this young in these circumstances has been attacked.

“It shouldn’t happen.

“Everyone has a right to feel safe in our community.

“This sort of behaviour will not be tolerated and we’ve thrown all our resources that we can possibly (spare) to it at this stage to hold this person accountable.”

Anyone with information is urged to contact police.

-with AAP