Driver lights cigarette near propane tank, torches car

A Coeur d’Alene man was hospitalized Friday after setting his car on fire in a motel parking lot. Michael R. Brandt, 41, suffered burns and totaled his car after lighting a cigarette while inside the vehicle; a full propane tank sat in the passenger seat, police said. Witnesses at the Cedar Motel, 316 Coeur d’Alene Lake Dr., pulled Brandt, 41, from his burning 1992 Lumina about 2:24 p.m. Coeur d’Alene firefighters extinguished the blaze, and Brandt was transported to Kootenai Medical Center emergency room, where he was still being evaluated at 4:30 p.m.