A 34-year-old man, shouting on a porch as deputies approached, doused himself with gasoline and lit himself on fire Sunday afternoon at the edge of Fort Collins.
But Poudre Valley firefighters almost instantly blasted him with fire-retardant white foam and saved his life.
The Poudre Valley Fire Authority crew responded so swiftly — within seconds — that Roland Rideout was able to begin to run away, authorities said Sunday night.
Larimer County Sheriff’s deputies with dogs quickly nabbed him. Rideout was treated for minor injuries at a local hospital — and hauled directly to Larimer County Jail.
He was being held on suspicion of first-degree arson and resisting arrest, sheriff’s spokesman Jered Kremer said.
“He fought a little bit,” Kremer said.
Deputies had responded to the scene after receiving a call about “suspicious activity” near West Magnolia Street and Overland Trail in unincorporated Larimer County. Bystanders pointed to a man shouting in a street and acting in a way the authorities characterized as erratic.
When deputies ordered him to stop, he ran onto a house porch, demanded media attention, and displayed a container filled with gasoline, Kremer said.
He soaked himself with the gasoline, which also apparently spilled onto the house, and held up a cigarette lighter — threatening to immolate himself, the authorities said in a written statement.
At about 3:30 p.m. he flicked the lighter.
Poudre firefighters had taken up a position with a hose and sprayed out plumes of white foam.
“This was a very unusual type of incident for us,” Poudre Valley Fire Capt. Patrick Love said.
“It was well-timed. Without the excellent communication and coordination with dispatchers and Larimer County Sheriff’s officers, this could have been drastically different.”
Deputies later determined that Rideout was wanted on a warrant for failure to appear in court for misdemeanor traffic charges.
