By Matt Cohen and Sarah Anne Hughes

Update: The man who poured gasoline on himself and set himself on fire at the National Mall has died, D.C. police told the Washington Post. The burns were so severe that the man will be identified through DNA and dental records.

Original post

Multiple agencies responded this afternoon to a report of a man on fire at the National Mall.

A Metropolitan Police Department spokesperson said that officers were dispatched to “reports of a man on fire” and that “he is conscious and breathing.” D.C. Fire and EMS spokesman Tim Wilson said units were dispatched to the call at 4:24 p.m. and arrived three minutes later. The patient was taken by helicopter to an area hospital, he said. D.C. Fire Fighters L36 tweeted that the man suffered “severe burns.”

Metro Transit Police and Park Police are also responding. Seventh Street between Madison Drive NW and Jefferson Drive SW are closed “due to an injured citizen,” MPD tweeted.

It is not known how or why the fire started.

This post will be updated as more information becomes available.

Filed Under: man on fire, national mall,