A Gander man injured in a fiery explosion at the town's annual demolition derby in 2008 has suffered another setback.

Grant Gillard was at a St. John's hospital this week getting treatment for his injuries when someone broke into his car.

"First thing come to my mind, was the poor stealing from the poor, basically, because I'm on my own," Gillard told CBC News. "I'm not working yet, I'm not going to be working for a long time."

On Thursday morning, Gillard's car was in a hotel parking lot near St. Clare's hospital in St. John's. He found the window smashed.

Among the stolen items were a GPS, an iPod Touch charger, and more than $200 in cash.

The thief or thieves even stole the knob for the wheel that helps him steer the car.

"My money's gone to get home with, my money's gone for my dinner, so what am I going to do?" he asked.

Badly burned

Gillard was driving in the annual Gander demolition derby in 2008 when his car caught fire.

He was badly burned, and spent more than a year in the hospital.

Gillard, who is originally from Twillingate, was a cook at a Gander restaurant before the accident.

Today, he is still struggling to recover. He's had more surgeries than he can count, including one last week on his arm. And he's not done yet.

Gillard says his insurance won't cover him for the theft.

After suffering through the horrendous crash, and spending the years since trying to recover, Gillard can't believe what's happened now.

The RNC are investigating. But Gillard doesn't ever expect to see his belongings again.