ATHENS, Ala. (AP) — Authorities are trying to understand why a man set himself on fire outside a Walmart store in Alabama.

Athens Fire Chief Floyd Johnson tells news outlets that a man doused himself with gasoline, ran into the store and then came outside and set himself ablaze.

Police were using fire extinguishers from their patrol cars to extinguish the flames when fire crews arrived.

Johnson says it’s unclear if the man suffered from mental illness or set fire to himself for another reason.

The incident happened about 6:30 p.m. Thursday, and the man was taken to a local hospital before being sent by helicopter ambulance to a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee.

Officials have not released the man’s name or his condition.