UPDATE: Click here for the latest information.
A relative of a man who was burned fatally on Santa Monica Boulevard is asking people looking at Internet video of the ghastly Halloween accident for clues.
The man was engulfed in flames during a concert in the middle of the street as 400,000 people partied in West Hollywood. He died the next morning at Cedas-Sinai Medical Center.
His relatives identified him as Gilbert Estrada, 51. But the L.A. County coroner has not confirmed that name, as it is still notifying relatives.
Estrada’s brother has created a GoFundMe page where he is seeking donations for help with funeral and burial costs.
A video of the incident posted on YouTube Friday shows a ball of flame erupting at the back of a large crowd watching the “Pulp Friction” stage at the huge street party.
Watch the video here. (Warning: It is very graphic.)
“Can you guys tell me what happened before he got caught on fire?” reads a comment posted by a user named Estradaryanric. “If you smelled gas or if anyone did this by accident?
“That’s my uncle, his name is Gilbert Estrada and he died in the hospital that morning,” he posted.
The video shows Estrada, who appeared to be barechested, standing on the roadway, cloaked in flames. He then moves onto the grassy median of the boulevard, where he collapses.
As the surrounding crowd whooped at the spectacle, the man spun on the ground, flames reaching five feet in the air.
Several bystanders attempt to extinguish his flaming pants with their bare hands, and pour water from a plastic bottle, the video shows.
The video clip is one minute and 41 seconds long. Near its end, Estrada could be seen lying face down in the gutter, motionless.
“I’m doing this for me and my dad, we just need closure right now,” Estradaryanric posted on YouTube.
The man’s name was not released by the coroner, but the Los Angeles Times has also published his name as Gilbert Estrada.
The incident occurred around 10:25 p.m. Thursday.
Estrada was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center where he was later pronounced dead, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
Detectives asked for the public’s assistance to determine the source of the ignition or how the victim became engulfed in flames. Persons with information were encouraged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500.
Information can also be provided anonymously by calling “Crime Stoppers” at (800) 222-TIPS (8477), by texting the letters TIPLA plus the tip to CRIMES (274637) or by using the website http://lacrimestoppers.org
my husband was in a freak accident only 4 seconds he caught on fire and burned 35% of his body. 3rd degree mostly. fire is NO JOKE! the skin is the largest organ we have AND a very important one! to me it seemed unbelievable that he caught fire for like 3 or 4 seconds and had such intense awful burns! this is no joke! RIP this poor man and peace to his poor family.. so so sorry.
I don’t have any details about this particular case, but generally speaking, it’s possible for a burn victim to die from heat inhalation. Breathing in the flames or heated air could cause damage to the respiratory system that might prevent a person from being able to breathe. It’s also possible that shock or heatstroke were aggravating factors.
In any case, it’s just unbearably tragic and I hope more answers are forthcoming.
Personally I would be interested in seeing a cost/benefit analysis of the Halloween Carnival to determine its value to the city.
This is as outrageous as it is sad. Those people dancing around the man both during the flaming moments and afterward while he lay on the ground dying are sub-human and their names and images should be publically exposed.
From personal experience, I can tell that the carnival is out-of-control and must be discontinued. There was a steady parade of law enforcement/emergency vehicle traffic up and down Palm Avenue until well after 3 AM Halloween night. I can understand people wanting to have fun but this has gone way beyond that.
seems weird, how did he die if only his lower body burned, and he wasnt on fire that long it seemed, not long enough to expire.