LISBON – A man being treated for burns was playing with lighter fluid while drunk, the state fire marshal’s office says.
Cory Mathis, 37, of Lisbon, is being treated at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston after setting himself afire, the office said.
Officials say Mathis was intoxicated Tuesday evening when he began playing with lighter fluid, going so far as pour it on his hands and light it. Things went further downhill when he put the container in his pocket, where the fluid leaked onto his pants.
Friends said Mathis walked into a hallway and returned with his clothes on fire. Officials say he suffered second-degree burns to his legs, and also had facial injuries.
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