A Texas man suffered life-threatening burns on Friday when he tried to light a cigarette near a fuel tank, neighbors said.
Fire crews and medics responded to a reported explosion around 1 p.m. and found the man lying in his lawn with "serious" burns, according to reports
Crystal Schauer, who lives a few houses down, said she heard four or five cannon-like explosions.
"We saw down there it was all smoke," Schauer said. "They said he was lighting a cigarette next to the diesel (tank) and wasn't paying attention."
Living in that neck of the woods, Schauer said, they're used to the occasional rogue gunshot ringing through the neighborhood. But this time, it was different.
The first one was really loud," neighbor Misty Morgan said. "I looked outside and didn't think anything of it until I saw the first fire truck."
Morgan said she rushed over to the man's home soon after realizing what happened and shuddered while describing the extent of his burns. She said she's never seen anything like that before.
The Montgomery County Fire Marshal's Office is investigating the incident.
Man sets himself on fire trying to light cigarette near fuel tank
