Boy set afire describes his painful ordeal

"I stood up, and kids are screaming on the bleachers, and I ran down the bleachers and stopped, dropped, and rolled," Awalt said last night in his first interview since the incident. By telephone from Brigham and Women's Hospital, where Awalt is being treated for third-degree burns, he said he was at a loss to explain why a classmate tried not once but three times to ignite his costume with a cigarette lighter.

"I have no idea why he would do that," Awalt said of the allegations against Lucas White, 15, of Otis, Maine.

White was charged as a juvenile yesterday in Ellsworth District Court with one count of arson, two counts of elevated aggravated assault, and two counts of aggravated assault, said his attorney, Christopher Largay. Due to White's age, his name had been withheld until authorities filed the felony charges yesterday. White entered the equivalent of not guilty pleas and was ordered to remain in his parents' custody.

Largay said White is remorseful for his actions. "This is totally out of character for Lucas to be involved with something like this," Largay said, adding that White's parents were "shocked and horrified" when they heard of the incident.

Awalt, meanwhile, is trying to heal from burns over 35 percent of his body, mostly on his back and legs. Earl and Lorraine Awalt said their grandson had the common sense to roll on the ground when he was on fire, and they believe he is tenacious enough to handle the painful recovery process, which is complicated by the boy's diabetes.

Awalt's grandparents, who are also his legal guardians, said they cannot comprehend why anyone would purposely ignite the boy's costume. "There was no reasoning," Earl Awalt said. "The kid made three attempts to do this. He tried three times to set Donald on fire."

On the morning of the assembly, Donald Awalt said he was sitting behind White on the bleachers. Another student remarked that the camouflage materials on his costume resembled marijuana.

Police say that moments before he allegedly flicked the lighter, students overheard White say, "I wonder if this will burn."

Awalt remembers. "Lucas turned around, tried it twice, and I pushed him away twice, and the third time he got me. He started at the bottom of my pants."

Students screamed as Awalt became engulfed in flames. His costume ablaze, he bolted down the bleachers. When he hit the gymnasium floor, he rolled to douse the flames. "I was just thinking, `Put it out,' " Awalt said.

Then teachers and a school security guard threw their jackets on him, smothering the remaining flames. The other students were screaming, Awalt said, but he doesn't remember any of them moving.

The next minutes seemed like hours, Awalt said. He never lost consciousness as the school nurse tried to stabilize and comfort him. Finally, he was on his way to a hospital in Ellsworth, and then a helicopter brought him to Boston.

Yesterday, Awalt said he was "in a little bit of pain," but not the searing discomfort of eight days earlier. He suffered a setback Thursday, when his diabetes went out of control. "He had a very hard day;" said his grandfather. "The doctors thought they might have to put him back in the ICU."

Awalt's first skin graft operation, scheduled for Wednesday, had to be postponed until his diabetes improves and other procedures can be done, according to his grandparents.

Awalt's family is bracing for a long recovery. "He's doing pretty well," his grandfather said.