A Burlington woman died Monday after dousing herself in gasoline and setting herself ablaze at a filling station.
The station's manager, Kasey Morgan, told the Burlington Free Press that after the woman — whose name has not yet been released — paid for $5 worth of gas inside, she left her ID card on the counter, saying that she didn't need it anymore. Morgan shut off the gas pumps as she watched the woman begin to pour gas all over herself, but was unable to stop the woman from setting herself on fire.
Morgan put the fire out with a fire extinguisher, but the woman, who police said was in her 30s, was already too badly burned and died on the way to the hospital. The exterior of the woman's Subaru Forester was badly burned, and the gas pump it was next to was slightly charred. Fire crews cleaned up burn marks and debris, and removed the vehicle on a flatbed trailer.
Morgan was treated for a case of shaken nerves, but was otherwise OK. Her mental trauma is understandable. Burn injuries, especially third degree burns covering most of the body, are nothing if not grotesque. (Hat tip to GuardDuck_Half-fast or half-assed, your choice!)
Photo credit: WCAX.com