- West Milwaukee - A 78-year-old blind man died mysteriously
of burns he suffered Thursday after apparently setting himself on fire
while lighting a cigar, authorities said.
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- Investigators remained puzzled late Thursday over the
rapidity with which Francis Bertschy became engulfed in flames. He suffered
second- and third-degree burns to about 95% of his body, fire officials
said.
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- Officials were investigating whether an unknown compound
such as glue or alcohol may have been on Bertschy's skin.
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- No such substances were found on the man's body, however,
and a search of the apartment he and his wife shared in the 5000 block
of W. National Ave. failed to turn up any signs of an accelerant.
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- A spokeswoman at St. Mary's Hospital, where Bertschy
was treated, said Bertschy died sometime Thursday evening. She was unsure
what time he died, however, and could not comment on the extent of his
injuries.
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- Bertschy was burned about 6:15 a.m. Thursday after his
cotton clothing apparently caught fire while he was trying to light a cigar
with a match.
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- Fatima Ahmed, Bertschy's 13-year-old neighbor, said she
awoke early Thursday morning as Bertschy screamed desperately for help
and his wife, Mary, pounded frantically on her front door.
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- "I got scared at first because I thought, 'Nobody
pounds on our door at 6 (o'clock) in the morning," she said. "Then
I heard Mary's husband screaming, 'Someone help me. I'm on fire.' When
I went out in the hallway, I saw him standing there with his hand on fire."
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- As Fatima dialed 911 from her home, she said her mother,
Noorb Bebegum, followed the Bertschys back into their apartment.
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- When she joined them minutes later, Fatima said she saw
the flames had crept across Bertschy's arm and chest and had consumed his
clothing, which Fatima described as "boxer shorts and a muscle shirt."
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- The West Milwaukee Middle School student said Frank Bertschy
was stumbling around the one-bedroom apartment, turning on faucets and
splashing himself with water in an attempt to douse the flames.
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- When police arrived, they found Bertschy still on fire
in the bathroom. They used a fire extinguisher and towels to douse the
flames, authorities said. Two police officers were later treated for smoke
inhalation.
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- Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on March 30,
2001.
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