A 19-year-old woman caught fire after she was fiddling with a cigarette lighter as she pumped gas, authorities said.
Brianna Sanchez was at a Sun Dial gas station with her boyfriend Friday night when the incident occurred, said Sgt. Jackie Budd, a spokesman with the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.
Budd called the incident a “freak accident” and said there was no reason to believe otherwise.
He said witnesses reported the woman was casually pumping gas and that she had a lighter in her hand. That’s when flames shot out of the gas tank.
The woman and the immediate area caught fire. A person at the scene put out the blaze with a fire extinguisher.
Sanchez was taken to San Juan Regional Medical Center with burns to her face and upper torso. Budd didn’t know the extent of her injuries.