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Spontaneous human combustion: Woman bursts into flames on park bench in Germany

She is thought to be in a critical condition in hospital

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Police tape cordons off the playground bench where the woman burst into flames, in Flensburg, Germany PA

A woman was left fighting for her life after apparently bursting into flames on a park bench in Germany.

According to the Flensburger Tagesblatt and The Local, fire and smoke emerged from the woman, who is believed to be in her 40s and originally from Mauritius, as she sat on a bench in Flensburg, northern Germany.

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Spontaneous combustion, the divisive theory linked to woman's death

She has reportedly been left severely burned, despite the best efforts of a passer-by who tried to beating out the blaze with his jacket. 

Witnesses at the scene told local media the woman "did not say anything" as the flames engulfed her.

She was taken to hospital and has since been transferred to a specialist burns unit in Lübeck, where she is said to be in a critical condition.

5 apparent instances of Spontaneous Human Combustion - in pictures

5 apparent instances of Spontaneous Human Combustion - in pictures

  • 1/5

    In 1641 Danish doctor and mathematician Thomas Bartholin described the death of an Italian knight called Polonus Vorstius. According to Bartholin, the knight had enjoyed a few glasses of strong wine with his parents at his home in Milan when he burped fire, succumbed to the flames and died.

    Jakub Hałun/Creative Commons

  • 2/5

    In one of the most recent reports of SHC, a blue flame apparently emanated from Jeannie Saffin, 61, as she sat before her family in 1982. Her brother-in-law Don Carroll said that the flame shot from Ms Saffin’s stomach as she sat at her kitchen table in Edmonton, north London. "She was roaring like a dragon," her . "The kitchen wasn't damaged, but her cardigan melted. The inquest was never sorted it out, but I know what I saw."

    PIERRE ANDRIEU/AFP/Getty Images

  • 3/5

    Dr Ciaran McLoughlin, a coroner, shocked the press in 2011 when he concluded that pensioner Michael Faherty, 76, died at his home in Galway, Ireland, because of SHC. Mr Faherty was found with severe burns, lying on his back with his head near open fireplace. Despite the blaze, the sitting room was untouched apart from burns on the ceiling directly above him and on the floor beneath him. Forensic experts who investigated the scene at Mr Faherty’s home concluded the fireplace was not linked to his death, and Dr Ciaran said SHC was the cause, “for which there is no adequate explanation.”

    Patrick Mackie/Creative Commons

  • 4/5

    In 1938, Maybelle Andrews was reportedly taken over by a blue flame at a ball in Chelmsford, Essex. Her fiancé and fellow partygoers were reportedly shocked when a fire erupted from her as she stood at the top of a staircase.

    Fox Photos/Getty Images

  • 5/5

    Dr John Irving Bentley's death captured the public imagination after newspapers published the image purporting to be of his charred remains. The image is now a symbol for the theory of SHC. The lower leg and slippered-foot of the 92-year-old retired physician were discovered next to the toilet in his Pennsylvania home, surrounded by a pile of ash beneath a walking frame.

    Adam Berry/Getty Images

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Some reports claimed that the woman has died. However this could not be confirmed.

According to The Local, prosecutors are currently keeping an open mind as to the cause of the incident. Prosecutor Ulrike Stahlmann-Liebelt reportedly said they have not ruled out suicide.

One witness claimed to have seen two men fleeing the scene shortly before the incident. 

Baby suffers spontaneous combustion

However, according to the IB Times, Flensburg public prosecutor Otto Gosch said: “We have no evidence that points to a third party fault.”

The Mail Online also discussed Spontaneous Human Combustion –  a term used to describe the body going up in flames with no “apparent external source of ignition”.