A Tennessee man who was trapped under his ATV for three days started a brush fire in Bluff Mountain late Monday night to signal for help, according to reports.
The isolated blaze in Servier County spread nearly 20 acres and continued early into Tuesday morning, Knox News reported. Crews have since contained the fire, though it took about three hours to reach the scene.
“It’s a real treacherous, steep area,” Waldens Creek Volunteer Fire Department Chief Tim Baker told the publication.
The man told officials he became trapped underneath the vehicle after it flipped over while he was camping in the woods, according to WBIR. He suffered broken ribs, a crushed ankle and a hip injury when he was rescued, the site reported.
It was unclear how he started the fire. Calls to the Waldens Creek Volunteer Fire Department were not immediately returned.
The man was transported to a local hospital, according to Knox News. His condition was not immediately known.
“Nobody was gonna wander through and find him,” Baker told Knox News. He said that while he doesn’t condone starting fires, “under the circumstances … you do desperate things.”
Another firefighter was also injured during the rescue process after a tree limb fell and hit him in the back, the site reported. He was also taken to the hospital.
“So we had two people to rescue, not one,” Baker told Knox News.
No structures were threatened and there is no threat to the community.
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