Homeless Man Tasered, Catches Fire

Police in Lancaster, Ohio, say a homeless man was harassing customers outside a store on Monday night, and after a struggle, officers used a Taser on him, and the homeless man ended up "catching on fire."

"He had taken off his T-shirt, taken off his shoes and socks," said Brenda Ellis, who works at the shopping center. She's never seen police confront anyone before, but said, "You could tell he [the suspect] was incoherent."

And then what she saw next was really odd.

"He was kicking his arms and flailing around a lot. The police officers warned him that they'd Taser him if he didn't calm down. Of course he didn't. When they hit him [with the Taser] he just went 'poof,'" recalled Ellis. That "poof" was a fire that ignited on 31-year-old Daniel Wood's chest.

The Lancaster Eagle Gazette reported that Wood was spraying an aerosol can into his mouth and running through traffic in the Hocking Valley Plaza. Officers caught up to him but he resisted them.

"It was shocking cause you don't expect to see something like that," said Ellis.

Police officers were able to quickly smother the flames with their hands, but Wood received minor burn wounds to his chest.

"It's an open spark," explained Captain Adam Pillar of the Lancaster police. He said the Taser was working properly and it was likely the chemicals from the aerosol can, which Wood was carrying, that caught fire.

"We're going do an internal review. The chief is still gathering all the information. There might be more interviews with witnesses," continued Pillar.

Ellis is left with an image she won't soon forget. "I think it was just a freak thing that happened. Hopefully the young man will get some help."

Wood now sits in the county jail charged with assault and resisting arrest.

In July a man in Britain burst into flames after he was Tasered by police .

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