Anchorage Daily News

A woman was found burned on the side of the Seward Highway on Thursday night, according to Anchorage police.

Officials said they got a report of a fire burning in a grassy area off the northbound lanes between Dimond Boulevard and O'Malley Road at about 8:35 p.m.

Upon arriving at the scene, just off Brayton Drive, they found the middle-aged woman on the ground, smoldering and with a mostly empty gas can at her side, said Sgt. Pablo Paiz. She smelled of gas.

"We're only assuming she was doused in gas," he said. "My preliminary assessment is that we don't have a crime here. It appears it was a drunken, suicidal thing."

The woman, whose name was not immediately released, was alone and extremely intoxicated, he said. It was unclear whether she had a lighter, although there was a pack of cigarettes nearby, Paiz said.

She had singed hair and clothes but the burns appeared relatively minor, he said. She was transported to a local hospital for treatment and a police officer accompanied her to find out what happened, he said.

Police collected evidence, took photos and were treating the situation as if it were a crime until they found out for certain otherwise, he said.

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