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Man Severely Burned In Homeless Tent City In New Jersey

LAKEWOOD, N.J. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A 78-year-old man was severely burned early Monday when he accidentally caught himself on fire while sleeping in a tent encampment for the homeless near the Jersey Shore.

Lakewood police told the Asbury Park Press that Willie Dorsey apparently fell asleep Monday morning while he was using a fire to cook at Tent City, an encampment on Cedar Bridge in the woods of the Ocean County community.

A township officer conducting a traffic stop near the encampment site said Dorsey approached him around 2:15 a.m. Monday and told him what happened. He was flown to St. Barnabas Medical Center, where he was listed in stable but critical condition.

No other injuries were reported in the incident.

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