Man lights himself on fire in Othello

Used a lighter to check fuel level

OTHELLO — A man believed to be from Warden was caught on fire after checking the fuel level in a truck while at J.R. Simplot Co-Food Group in Othello Thursday night.

He suffered serious burns on his face and chest and was eventually airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Fire Chief Clyde Fought said.

The man used a lighter to check the truck's fuel level, he said. The diesel fumes were ignited resulting in a freak explosion.

"Apparently he couldn't see in the bottom of the tank," Fought said.

Flames blew out from the tank to his body, according to Fought.

The man was seen by the scale house attendant calling for help while engulfed in flames, Simplot Spokesperson Fred Zerza said. By the time the attendant reached him, the victim extinguished the flames himself. It is unknown how he extinguished the flames.

The man is not a Simplot employee, he is a driver for the Jose Elizalde Trucking company, Zerza said. He was at Simplot to deliver a load of raw potatoes.

Further information on the victim is unavailable.

"It never caught the truck on fire," Fought said.

The flames quickly burned themselves out.

There was no damage done to the Simplot facilities, Zerza said.