Jay Leno opened up for the first time on Tuesday about the fire that burned his face, chest, and hands on Nov. 12.
During the sit-down interview on the Today Show with Hoda Kotb, the former “Tonight Show” host, 72, talked about what happened when he and his friend David Killackey worked on Leno’s 1907 White Steam Car.
“The fuel line was clogged so I was underneath it,” Leno said. “It sounded clogged and I said, ‘Blow some air through the line,’ and so he did.” The fuel line made a noise “and suddenly boom, I got a face full of gas. And then the pilot light jumped and my face caught on fire.”
In an exclusive interview with TODAY’s @hodakotb, Jay Leno is opening up for the first time about the terrifying fire that caused severe burns to his face, chest and hands. Tune in to the Today Show tomorrow to see the full interview. https://t.co/YvS8dpOc8g
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) December 13, 2022
“And I said to my friend, I said, ‘Dave, I’m on fire.’ And Dave’s like, ‘All right.’ I said, ‘No, Dave, I’m on fire.’ And then, ‘Oh, my God.’ Dave, my friend, pulled me out and jumped on top of me and kind of smothered the fire,” Leno said. (RELATED: REPORT: Jay Leno Suffers Serious Burns In Fire)
Leno was treated for third-degree burns for 10 days at Grossman Burn Center at West Hills Hospital in Los Angeles, according to the outlet.
The facility’s director. Dr. Peter Grossman, said Leno suffered “relatively serious” burns to “approximately 7% of his body.”