22-Year-Old Man Dies After Accidentally Setting Himself On Fire At 910 McDonald Avenue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cr5m7Rke8RM
The 22-year-old man who was rushed to Maimonides Medical Center yesterday afternoon after accidentally setting himself on fire in the basement at 910 McDonald Avenue died today, ABC 7 reported.
The man, whose name has not been released, was allegedly drying tobacco leaves for what sources told the Daily News was for a “hookah binge” when fumes from the chemicals he was using ignited the pilot light in the water heater, causing his clothing to be set on fire.
As reported by Gothamist, security footage showed the man wandering the street while on fire – until two men managed to bring him to the ground and extinguish the flames.
Witnesses said he ran across the street, completely ablaze, before several Good Samaritans jumped in to help.
The man’s clothing was burned from his body, and firefighters were on the scene in minutes. But two Good Samaritans — a truck driver and a businessman — brought him to the ground and put out the flames.
“I hung up the phone and I started chasing him,” passerby Alex Mayer said. “And I’m like, ‘Drop and roll! Drop and roll!’ I caught up with a half block up, when he finally dropped.”
“He dropped on his side to roll, but he was still on fire,” the truck driver, Claude, said. “And I took the fire extinguisher out of the truck and I sprayed him…It put the fire out.”
After being taken to Maimonides, the man was transferred to the Weill Cornell burn unit, where he died, ABC 7 said.
The FDNY told us that the incident is still under investigation, but they do not believe there was criminality involved.