A 70-year-old uncle commonly known as “Ah Gu” (Mr Cow) set himself on fire on Tuesday night (31 May) at a car park in Geylang.
He’s believed to have carried out the act of self-immolation after getting retrenched from his job as a kopitiam assistant, after a quarrel with a female stall assistant.
Those hanging around Geylang Lorong 19 at around 10pm got a huge shock when they saw Ah Gu pour a can of flammable liquid on himself and set himself on fire.
And as he burned, he postured with his arms outstretched.
Some eyewitnesses say he burned for about 4 minutes, and that the flames burst into the air and climbed up to 3 storeys high.
Passers-by tried to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher from a nearby kopitiam.
Said one Mr Heng:
“When we put the fire out, he was still conscious but had gone quiet. His clothes and hair were completely burnt off. He just stood there, stiff and burnt.”
Ah Gu suffered 3rd degree burns and was rushed to hospital.
Police are investigating the incident.
