Multiple callers reported the incident saying a man was burning, on his legs and feet, near the Sash Mill on the railroad tracks at 11:20 a.m., the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported.

Detective David Perry said the man "doused himself with paint thinner and lit himself on fire."

Perry said they found the paint thinner jug and matches nearby.

"We are investigating to see if there was any foul play, but it doesn't appear to be that way. It appears to be self-inflicted."

An air ambulance transported the man, who suffered third-degree burns over his entire body and severe airway burns, to a Bay Area burn center.

Witnesses said they heard the screams from inside the Sash Mill. They said when they got there, someone had put wet blankets on the man's feet and legs and used fire extinguishers to try to put out the flames.

Lesley Tellier, who works at Jacobs Farm, on the 300 block of Potrero said she heard the screams and ran out to help. She said they brought a 5-gallon jug of water and started pouring it on the man but by the time they got the water, the flames had burned off nearly all his clothes.

"We tried taking off his tennis shoes because they were still smoldering, but the rubber had melted into his feet," she said.

Tellier said the man was calling out a woman's name and saying he was forced to start the fire.

Police have the railroad tracks taped off. All that remains are the man's charred and melted shoes in a pool of mud.