POLAND — A man who doused himself with gasoline at The Big Apple store at routes 26 and 11 and set himself on fire early Tuesday died from his injuries, authorities said.
The 68-year-old man had driven to the store at 1510 Maine St. about 1 a.m. and parked next to a gas pump, according to a media statement released by Maine Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Shannon Moss.
The man removed the handle from the gas pump and poured gasoline on himself. After walking a short distance from the gas pumps, he lit himself on fire, Moss said.
A Big Apple store employee ran outside and extinguished the flames.
A 68-year-old man set himself on fire about 1 a.m. Tuesday near the gas pumps at The Big Apple at routes 26 and 11 in Poland, according to state investigators. Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal
One witness said she was riding by the store and saw a figure lying on the pavement engulfed in flames.
The man was pronounced dead from his injuries, Moss said.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Augusta was notified, and the man’s remains will be examined at a local funeral home, Moss said.
The Office of State Fire Marshal is investigating the incident, she said.
The man’s identity won’t be released until his family has been notified, Moss said.
No other injuries or damage occurred as a result of the fire, she said.
Authorities at the Office of State Fire Marshal were called to the scene by Poland Fire Department and were assisted in the investigation by the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office.
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