Portland police say a man who was suffering from a mental health crisis and making suicidal statements barricaded himself inside of a shed and lit it on fire.
Police say the incident happened Friday night. They received multiple 911 calls just after 7:00 p.m. from the area of 52 Parris Street. An officer arrived and found the 46-year-old man armed with a knife.
The man barricaded himself inside of a shed right when a crisis negotiator arrived on scene, and poured gasoline in and around it.
After about two and a half hours, the man agreed to come out, but the shed burst into flames seconds later with the man still trapped inside. Fire personnel and police were able to get water inside by breaking the windows. The man climbed out of one of the broken windows.
Police say he was taken into custody and brought to Maine Medical Center to be treated for his mental health crisis and some minor injuries sustained in the fire.
