I think people - until it happens to them - don't realize how much life can change in a split second. Though the ordeal lasted for hours, there was that one moment in which you can define all your life as having happened before and after that instant. Though, on occasion those moments might be good, for the most part they are not.
And it worries me when I read some of the posts and think 'wow, you're not just playing with fire, you've pretty much drenched yourself with gasoline and now are pulling out the Zippo and this is not going to end well.' I would hope that what is a tragic even to you can at least serve as a caution to others.