03-11-2009, 05:05 PM
A man caught fire yesterday afternoon while removing a car's gas tank in Jessup, leaving himself with serious burns and causing a small brush fire that was quickly extinguished, authorities said.
The incident happened about 4:35 p.m. in the area of Route 175 and Sellner Road, in the Anne Arundel County section of Jessup, according to the county Fire Department. The 33-year-old man, whose name was not released, had been removing the gas tank when he walked away from the vehicle "to warm himself near a barrel that had a fire burning inside," the department said in a statement.
Firefighters believe that vapors from the gasoline ignited, causing the man's clothes to catch fire. The man dropped to the ground and rolled in an attempt to extinguish the fire and, in the process, set fire to brush and grass, authorities said.
A friend called 911 and then drove the victim to Baltimore Washington Medical Center. Firefighters went to the location and extinguished the small brush fire, and then received a call from the hospital notifying them of the burn victim.
The victim, who suffered critical burns over 40 percent of his body, was later transferred to the burn center at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore, the Fire Department said.
The incident happened about 4:35 p.m. in the area of Route 175 and Sellner Road, in the Anne Arundel County section of Jessup, according to the county Fire Department. The 33-year-old man, whose name was not released, had been removing the gas tank when he walked away from the vehicle "to warm himself near a barrel that had a fire burning inside," the department said in a statement.
Firefighters believe that vapors from the gasoline ignited, causing the man's clothes to catch fire. The man dropped to the ground and rolled in an attempt to extinguish the fire and, in the process, set fire to brush and grass, authorities said.
A friend called 911 and then drove the victim to Baltimore Washington Medical Center. Firefighters went to the location and extinguished the small brush fire, and then received a call from the hospital notifying them of the burn victim.
The victim, who suffered critical burns over 40 percent of his body, was later transferred to the burn center at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center in Baltimore, the Fire Department said.