This is horrible. Portland, we have a problem.

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2010/01/portland_police_officer_accide.html

Portland police officer accidentally sprayed burning man with pepper spray

Portland Police Bureau Chief Rosie Sizer said this afternoon that an officer accidentally used a large can of pepper spray when trying to put out the fire on a man who set himself ablaze in downtown Wednesday.

Sizer said the officer was at a stoplight at Southwest 12th Street and Yamhill Street when she saw a man in flames in front of a building. The officer, along with citizen, immediately tried helping the man.

When the officer went to grab a fire extinguisher out of the trunk of her patrol car, she accidentally grabbed a large can of pepper spray used in riot control. Sizer said the pepper spray cans are red like a fire extinguisher.

The pepper spray was water-based, not oil-based, and non-flammable. A Fire Bureau investigator determined the pepper spray did not contribute to the spread of flames or severity of the burns, Sizer said.

The mistake undoubtably did increase the man's pain.

They ought to cut the guy a wicked big check to make up for the entirely avoidable agony the mistake caused.

If anything, water would generally tend to dilute fire. It would suck to be troubled enough to set yourself on fire. It would suck to be on fire, and it would surely suck to be on fire and sprayed with pepper spray. edited to add: It would suck to be a first responder confronted with a burning man, and it would suck to know you failed to save him.

But this man set himself ablaze, and it dosn't sound like there was much anyone could have done for him at that point. I wonder about this "religious group" that seems to have pawned him off on the mission. I can say with some personal knowledge that there are perfectly good missions much closer to Kansas than Portland, if that was all he needed.

Though I do question whether/why Portland Police carry riot control pepper on a regular basis. When was the last riot in Portland? Much less the last spontaneous unpredictable riot?