Spontaneous Human Combustion

Some say that humans can suddenly explode into a ball of flames, leaving only charred remains. The cause of this is unknown and there is no way to prepare.

Basic Information

Although, deadly and strange, the cases of Spontaneous Combustion are few and far between. There is no known cause for the internal flame- and there is no way to prepare.

Perhaps the case that researchers look at most is when Mary Reeser, age 67, went up in flames for no known reason in 1951. The St. Petersburg, Florida resident was discovered on July 2nd at 8 am by her land lady. When the woman tried to enter the apartment, she found the doorknob hot to the touch and got the help of two painters from across the street. When the men had finally forced their way into the apartment, what they found was a grisly site: the charred remains of the old woman in a chair. The only thing left of her, besides ashes, was a blackened foot and skull. Reports claim that her skull had shrunk due to the extreme heat, although this is unlikely, as skulls usually explode.

The official reason for the death was that she had fallen asleep while smoking, and had burned herself to death after her chair caught fire. In fact her son, her had seen her the day before, said she had taken two sleeping pills.

Reports do date back hundreds of years, however. During the late 1800s times, reports claim that old woman who drank often were known to explode in flames for no logical reason. It could be noted that drunks usually do not handle fire properly when intoxicated. In most cases a large amount of flammable objects are found near something that causes flame (smoking pipes, oil lamps, etc.) When looking at the strange cases of Spontaneous Human Combustion, it could be taken that they are like the Bermuda Triangle- a strange occurrence made even stranger by myth.