Watch Bystanders Take Selfies of Man on Fire Believing It to Be Street Performance

A regular day near the historic Galata Tower in Istanbul, Turkey was disrupted when an unidentified man, dressed as a Grim Reaper, poured gasoline over himself and set himself on fire in the middle of the day.

Onlookers, however, did not rush to the man's aid. To the contrary, most apparently thought it was some kind of show or troubling street performance, with a handful taking selfies with the 'live fireball', as the man staggered to his knees.

It was only when the man fell helplessly on the ground that two local shopkeepers came to his aid, dousing the flames with fire extinguishers.

Miraculously, the ‘torch-man’ survived the ordeal, despite being on fire for nearly a minute. He later talked with police officers that arrived at the scene while sitting on the ground. It is unclear what motivated the Grim Reaper to take such action.