Airport staff at Almaty International Airport in Kazakhstan witnessed a horror moment after a man set himself on fire. Shocking visuals of the moment have taken over social media, showing the man engulfed in a large ball of flames.
How did the incident unfold?
The man, suspected to be drunk, pleaded with staff to get him on a flight after missing his last train home, reported Kazakh outlet Tengrin News. Soon after, he entered a travel agency office inside the airport and asked an employee for a phone to call his wife. Their conversation reportedly turned into an argument. Following this, he asked the airport staff to leave.
“He had argued with his wife and missed his train. His tickets had expired. He came here to exchange them for plane tickets, demanding that railway tickets be swapped for airline ones. Some say he may have been drunk,” a police officer told Tengrin News.
What does the viral video show?
Within moments, he doused himself in gasoline and set himself on fire. A video shared widely on social media showed the man bursting into flames and then rushing towards petrified airport staff.
The horrified onlookers tried using an extinguisher to put out the fire. The footage captured the passenger lying on the floor and moaning.
The man is fighting for his life:
Reportedly, he was soon rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was left fighting for his life. “His condition is extremely serious. He is receiving full treatment in accordance with the Ministry of Healthcare’s clinical protocol,” said Almaty Public Health Department in a statement, reported Tengrin News.
The boss of the travel agency office where the man set himself on fire opened up about the heart-wrenching incident. “He came in, asked for a phone, started calling someone on it, said that he missed his flight, and then poured gasoline on himself. Our agent asked permission to leave, he let her out, and then set himself on fire,” the CEO told the Sun.
The CEO added, “Our brave employee Ksenia, it’s good that she didn’t panic, she worked clearly and quickly.”
“He didn’t ask to change the ticket, he just asked for a phone number. We don’t know him, he’s just a client, the agent didn’t have a conflict with him,” the company’s director told the Sun.
Authorities are investigating the incident:
An investigation has been launched into the matter. It is unclear how the man managed to bring gasoline inside the airport. The incident took place on the evening of August 25.
