IT'S every mother's worst nightmare - her baby scalded by a kettle of hot tea.

It takes just a split second - and that's exactly what happened to Angelina Jolie's adopted boy, Maddox.

The 13-month-old child was burned while Angelina was shooting her new movie, Tomb Raider 2, in north Wales. Maddox had to be rushed to not one, but two hospitals.

"Angelina says Maddox was seated in a mini-highchair, waiting to eat," says a source.

"One of her assistants had placed a pot of hot tea on the table. Then the table was accidentally bumped, sending the pot and the tea spilling over the baby."

As her child screamed in agony, a distraught Angelina raced to a local hospital in nearby Bangor, Wales.

The doctors there quickly decided the child needed a burn-treatment specialist, so he was transferred by ambulance to the Alder Hey children's hospital in Liverpool, 90 miles away, insiders report.

Maddox was immediately admitted and kept in the hospital for three days while doctors monitored his progress.

The nasty accident occurred as the actress was filming scenes for the sequel to her blockbuster movie in Snowdonia.

Angelina, 27, had insisted that Maddox stay with her for the duration of the production, in which she plays action heroine Lara Croft. Nannies watch the tot while she's working.

According to one published report, the mom instructed the nanny agency to send a different woman every day to look after Maddox so the boy wouldn't form strong links with anyone other than his mother.

Angelina and her baby have been inseparable since she adopted the Cambodian child.

The actress became involved in the plight of children like him when she visited the country on a United Nations fact-finding tour.

She filmed the first Tomb Raider movie in her son's native land.

The sultry beauty officially got the baby in March.

"When Maddox was hurt, Angelina was terrified," says a source.

During the baby's hospital stay, Angelina - who split from Maddox's adoptive father Billy Bob Thornton in June and filed for divorce the next month - put her filming commitments on hold to be with her son. "Maddox means everything to Angelina," says the source.

"The last thing she could ever imagine is her child being burned. But after his time in the hospital, Maddox was back to normal.

"He's doing great. Angelina is a devoted mother, and every break she has during the filming schedule is spent with him."

A nurse has checked on the child since his release from the hospital, and thankfully, the worst is over. Maddox has returned to work with his mom and has "enchanted everyone on the set," says Tomb Raider 2 spokeswoman Sue D'Arcy.

Angelina has thanked the doctors and nurses for their help.

"She was worried that Maddox might be scarred, but the doctors told her they believe he will heal well with no permanent marks," says a source.

"He was given antibiotics to stave off infection and fluids because he was dehydrated from crying.

"He's back with his mom and doing great. Angelina is very relieved."