Disaster for neighbor
Wow! Had to be terrible standing there watching it burn like that.
Old carburetor and wiring can be Russian Roulette.
But there's a lesson to be learned. A couple years ago I started my /6 and gas started to pour out of the BBS vent right onto the exhaust manifold. Luckily I spotted it pretty quickly and shut it off. Turned out the brass float developed a leak and was overweight with fuel, keeping the needle off the seat over flowing the bowl.
Now I keep a fire extinguisher in my old cars INSIDE within reach under the seat. Cheap insurance!