INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — A 77-year-old man set his mobile home on fire Friday morning, which he said had dynamite inside, forcing the evacuation of his neighbors along the 5000 block of 45th Street in the Gifford area.
The structure was fully engulfed, according to the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office.
Emergency crews and authorities arrived around 9:15 a.m., according to the Sheriff’s Office. About a dozen neighboring mobile homes were evacuated when it was reported that there may have been dynamite in the burning home.
Witnesses reported seeing the 77-year-old man attempting to set a riding lawnmower on fire and then drive it into the side of his trailer, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Neighbors attempted to pull the riding mower away from the house and stop the man from burning his home.
The 77-year-old confronted the neighbors with a rifle and ordered them to leave him alone and not interfere with his attempts to set the home and lawn mower on fire.
They told investigators that he fired several shots in the air in an apparent attempt to scare them. One witness reported the man was pouring gasoline on his trailer and a burnt gas can was found nearby.
As the neighbors who attempted to stop the man were walking away from the now-armed man, they reported hearing another gunshot and turned to see the elderly man, now seated in his wheel chair next to his car, with an injury to his head from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to authorities.
The wound was not fatal and the man was able to speak with deputies when they arrived. He then told authorities that he had dynamite in his trailer. Fire officials were unable to confirm if there were dynamite in the home, but there appeared to be several small explosions consistent with ammunition being burned, authorities said.
The man was flown to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center where he is being treated for his injury, according to the Sheriff’s Office. While there, he continued to speak with investigators. He will likely receive a psychiatric evaluation after he is treated for the gunshot wound, the Sheriff’s Office said.
The scene around 45th Street was blocked in both directions near the 5000 block for about an hour this morning.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
