Florida man sets his hospital bed on FIRE to try to get nurse’s’ attention 

A man at a Florida hospital decided the best way to get his nurse’s attention was to set his bed on fire, according to local authorities. 

John King allegedly admitted to setting a plastic bag on fire on Saturday to spite the AdventHealth New Smyrna Beach staff. 

He claims they were ignoring his request to bring him clothes, believing the fire would get their attention, the New Smyrna Beach Police Department explained to WKMG. 

King’s roommate told police that he saw the man light a small object on fire but adds that he was able to convince King to put out the fire. 

But upon returning to his bed, the roommate noticed that King was relighting the fire. It was then that the roommate used his emergency button to notify staff.

‘The (expletive) in here lit his bed on fire. I can’t breathe. The smoke is in the room,’ the roommate is said to have told nurses, according to police records. 

He claims they were ignoring his request to bring him clothes, believing the fire would get their attention at the facility

A nurse ran into the room and saw the fire, alerting others to contact the authorities. 

Another nurse used a fire extinguisher to put out the fire but noticed that King was making his way to an elevator in an attempt to escape. 

King was stopped by staff until police arrived. He gave authorities the red and silver Bic lighter that he used to start the fire.

King was charged with a felony count of arson. 

A hospital administrator shared that the bed was damaged beyond repair and a new one would need to be ordered to replace it. 

The bed costs roughly $4000, the administrator added. 

King had been admitted to the hospital for respiratory failure and admitted that he had no plans of harming anyone at the facility.