LINCOLNVILLE — A Lincolnville man sustained serious burns to his neck, chest and hands Sunday around noon while he was working on a small refrigerator inside a camper in his driveway on Calderwood Road.

Kergan Thomann, 29, was cutting a line to the refrigerator when he apparently hit a fuel line, causing an explosion.

A neighbor reportedly heard the loud explosion and then yelling, and a report of a fully involved structure fire was then called in to 911 on Sunday, Aug. 30. That call prompted a response by Lincolnville Fire Department and mutual aid from the fire departments in Hope and Camden.

North East Mobile Health Services was also called due to at least one confirmed injury, and two ambulances traveled to the scene.

According to a relative of Thomann’s, the neighbor ran over and found Thomann outside the camper, walking around, with visible burns to his neck and hands. Lincolnville Fire Chief Ben Hazen said that when he arrived, Thomann was trying to go inside his house, but was advised to stay outside and not touch anything due to the extent of his injuries.

Hazen said there was a small amount of smoke coming from inside the camper when he first arrived, but no fire. Mutual aid from the other towns was canceled within a couple of minutes, as it was determined there was no fire or that it had extinguished itself.

LifeFlight of Maine was called soon after the arrival of the first responders, and while the helicopter was flying to the Lincolnville Fire Station for the transfer, the ambulance crew on-site was preparing Thomann for the trip. The helicopter touched down just before 1 p.m. and following an assessment by the LifeFlight crew, Thomann was moved from the ambulance into the helicopter. He was to be taken initially to Maine Medical Center in Portland.

Reach Editorial Director Holly S. Edwards at hollyedwards@penbaypilot.com and 706-6655.