Texas man Justin Bartek dies after lighting firework off chest

A postman has died after he placed a large firework on his chest and set it off, police said.

Justin Bartek, 30, was setting off fireworks with friends at a fishing spot on the Colorado River in Texas when he decided to light one on his chest.

But the stunt went wrong and the father-of-one was rushed to Columbus Community Hospital with severe injuries to his chest. He died on Tuesday.

‘He just had an infectious spirit, whenever you met him you met a friend,’ Erica Jackson, a friend of Justin, told KPRC.

‘He was the light of many people’s lives,’ a friend said (Picture: Facebook)

‘He was the light of many people’s lives and the world to the people that knew him, and he would give the world to any that asked.’

Justin had a three-year-old son called Braxton with his long-time partner, Summer Jenkins.

Friends and relatives set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for his funeral and future expenses.

An autopsy will take place later this week.