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4 Jun, 2015 06:47

Blazing Texas: Man sets car, himself on fire, blast throws policemen clear (VIDEO)

Blazing Texas: Man sets car, himself on fire, blast throws policemen clear (VIDEO)

A man rushed inside his car and set it and himself alight at a gas station in the city of Austin, Texas. But the alleged suicide attempt was unsuccessful – he was saved by two police officers, though he received injuries.

The dashcam video that recorded the moment was published by Austin Police Department, which said that on Tuesday they “responded to a check welfare call … for a man threatening to light his vehicle on fire.”

When the officers arrived, they tried to talk with the man whom they identified as Andrew Guerrero, 57. In the footage, the man is heard saying: "I think I'm going to set the car on fire."

Guerrero then jumped in his car and “lit the accelerant he had previously poured inside of his car with a lighter,” police said in a statement. “This caused the explosion that blew the officers and the suspect away from the car.”

He then tried to get back in the car but came back out.

READ MORE: Police shoot & kill armed black teen in St. Louis area

"That car got hot quick," Cpt. Andy Reardon with the Austin Fire Department told Texas-based KXAN-TV channel. "We're talking thousands of degrees inside there, you saw the force it created right there. For him to get back in the car like that, to do that, he was very dedicated on killing himself."

The man was taken to the Brook Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, with “non-life threatening injuries,” police said, adding that the two policemen received minor injuries.

"I'm very proud of the officers' courageous life-saving efforts and relieved their injuries were minor," Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo said. "My thoughts and prayers go out to the person they saved."

The man was later charged with First Degree Felony Arson (Vehicle), police added.

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