Security footage from a Rochester, N.Y., gas station on Wednesday shows a man set on fire and sent flying after his car exploded.
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According to Rochester police, 45-year-old Igor Pataco had just filled a container with gas and placed it in the trunk of his vehicle.
“I think it spilled, that’s how his problem started,” station owner Salem Nagi told the Democrat & Chronicle. “I think he spilled some gas in the car and went to light a cigarette in the car.”
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The video shows Pataco lean into his car moments after he filled the gas can when the blast happens.
Pataco can be seen flying backwards and falling to the ground as flames engulf his car and sparks litter the parking lot around him.
Pataco is then seen rolling on the ground in an attempt to extinguish flames that had engulfed his clothes.
Nagi and another witness were recorded coming to the Pataco’s aid.
Pataco suffered third-degree burns to 30 per cent of his body.
Investigators suggest fumes from the gas can may have ignited the blast.
“It can be ignited simply from static electricity,” battalion chief James Hartman told WHEC.
The explosion caused the security camera to shake. It also damaged the front of the gas station.
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