Pontiac man in critical condition after being engulfed in flames

A 75-year-old man in Pontiac was critically injured after he was engulfed in flames Sunday evening after a fire broke out in his apartment, officials announced Monday. 

The man's oxygen tank had fallen over near several lighted candles while he was on the phone to his daughter, according to the Oakland County Sheriff's Office.

A neighbor said she heard the victim yelling "fire" in the hallway of the apartment complex on the 1200 block of Colony Lane and tried to put out the flames with a blanket and a fire extinguisher. 

When sheriff's deputies arrived to help the Waterford Regional Fire Department at around 10 p.m., the subject was "still smoldering," the release said.

Paramedics took the victim to McLaren Oakland Hospital for treatment, the Sheriff's Office said. He was later transported to the Detroit Medical Center, where he was listed in critical condition with second-degree burns over 82% of his body. 

The first deputy on the scene was taken to McLaren Oakland Hospital for smoke inhalation, and was treated and released.

halbarghouthi@detroitnews.com

@HaniBarghouthi